An Unlikely Mating
by Dorkfishe97
Summary: What happens when Sesshomaru joins the group and Kagome gets sick of InuYasha always leaving for Kikyou? Will romance blossom, or will there be hardships they all must overcome to finally be happy? Bad summary and ratings may change! R&R please! T for language!
1. Silence is Golden

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 1: Silence is Golden<p>

Whoever said, "silence is golden," must have been a compulsive liar, an idiot, or perhaps both because this silence seemed like a black hole about to consume me. Heck, oblivion almost seemed better than facing what stared at me from across the fire. For about an hour now, all that I heard was the sound of crickets, the crackling of the fire, and the infrequent sigh from one of the silent group members.

I looked across the campfire at InuYasha. The situation had worsened when I dropped the bomb. He still seemed as cross at me as he had been earlier when I told him the "good news." Well, apparently it wasn't that good of news because a fight broke out, complete with punching, throwing, and yelling all on InuYasha's part. He looked like a three-year-old throwing a temper tantrum. Well, at least he wasn't screaming at me anymore; that was a plus.

The fact that he couldn't be happy for me just this once peeved me to no end. He saw me kiss another man and then left—I thought we'd at least reached some sort of silent agreement after he witnessed that! I hadn't cheated on him; I just neglected to tell him of the little development to spare his feelings. I loved him for the longest time, and he never loved me back; I moved on, as any self-respecting women should do. Besides, all he saw me as was a copy of Kikyo, and he made that clear over the years. I pretty much assumed that he knew that I would finally move on with my life.

Then when he came back after a while, I just assumed that he got over the fact I moved on—even though he had thrown a punch or two. Besides, he brought Kikyo back with him, so didn't that say something? He took the time that he needed to find closure, and eventually I understood that. I was fine that he seemed happy with Kikyo. I wanted them to be happy together. What made me mad stemmed from the fact that he couldn't be happy for me. Didn't I deserve any happiness?

Everyone else seemed happy for me. Sango hugged me; Shippou seemed happy to have a father figure finally, and Miroku had even made some perverted remarks about my new man already. Even Kikyo had been grateful that I finally found the happiness I deserved. Not InuYasha though—he acted like this was a colossal surprise that all of this happened. He had to have seen it coming, right? It wasn't my fault that he was too much of an idiot to read all the signs.

I thought that maybe since he had Kikyo, that this wouldn't be so bad for him, or for me. I mean, they were supposed to be a couple. I thought that maybe since InuYasha finally made up his mind he would stop comparing me to Kikyo, but even now as she traveled with us, everything I did could never compare to her. I thought InuYasha moved past this some time ago.

I didn't cook ramen right, my jokes were lame, and I made a pathetic miko compared to Kikyo. Ever since he returned it seemed like his only mission in life was to make me feel like a shadow next to Kikyo. Sometimes, I felt that echo of the love I had for him, and I remembered that aching stab in my chest. Thankfully, I discovered a real man that only ever built me up. InuYasha must have seen this, so I don't know whom he was trying to convince more: himself or me.

The man in question grabbed my hand and squeezed, giving me a little more strength and making me feel better. He kissed my palm slyly, reminding me of how much I loved him, and how I fell for him in such a short amount of time. I leaned into his side and sighed in contentment.

InuYasha looked up and gave me the same look that he gave me earlier. The look was one of utter betrayal, which just made me irate all over again. It wasn't as if I had been hiding anything when he came back. I had kept my relationship out in the open for a few weeks now. The only part I had left out was that eventually, I would mate the magnificent man beside me.

InuYasha shot my future mate a dirty look, and I started to feel another headache coming on. I tried to remember where it all went wrong, but I honestly couldn't recall. I mean, it wasn't my fault that Sesshomaru wanted me to be his mate. On the other hand, maybe it was.

**A/N: Yes, I know, most of you are probably wondering... WHERE DID THE REST OF THE STORY GO?! Well, I'm rewriting it. I feel that all of you that liked this story deserve better, so I am editing and lengthening and probably changing some things around. As a writer, I believe that only my best should be out there, and what I had up before was not my best. It was old and came from the era when I didn't proof-read or plan ahead. Also, the endless night WILL BE GONE. Oh, and if you are new to this story, welcome. Ignore everything I just said!**


	2. A New and Different Light

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 2: A New and Different Light<p>

**5 months earlier**

Unexpectedly, InuYasha stopped walking ahead of me; I was grateful for the slight pause to our endless hiking. Since this morning, we pushed through the woods without stopping for even a short break. We were close to a few jewel shards and InuYasha was acting like a slave driver, and I was not, and never would be, anything akin to being his slave. The part of me that looked on the bright side chose to believe he might not even be tired from all the walking—even though we humans felt the effects of the morning. Sometimes I wish he would take a moment to realize that the rest of us were human and that we required rest sometimes.

"What's wrong, InuYasha?" Miroku asked from the back of the group where he chattered with Sango and Shippou. Kirara walked in lazy circles around them, playing a game to entertain Shippou.

"Something is off," he stated suspiciously. He lifted his nose and scented the air, acting much like the dog that everyone knew he could be. He narrowed his eyes and drew his sword with a dramatic flourish.

"Sesshomaru," he cursed quietly. "Kagome get behind me! That bastard is coming! He probably wants to steal the shards or something! Don't worry, I'll take care of him!" he all but yelled.

Rolling my eyes, I stepped away from InuYasha and went to stand by Sango. I crossed my arms and sighed, sick of him treating me like the destitute little miko I used to be so many months ago— no, not months, years; over two years had passed since I started coming to feudal Japan, and somewhere down the line, I had drawn the line. I was sick of him comparing me to Kikyo and complaining that he always had to save me, so I decided to start training with my miko skills. It was astonishing how strong I had grown with just a little amount of training. Not only could I sense Sesshomaru; I could also probably wound him, and pretty severely if I wanted to.

In addition, I sensed Sesshomaru long before InuYasha had, but I wasn't about to tell him that little tidbit. For days now, Sesshomaru seemed to trail behind our little group. Actually, most of the time I could sense Sesshomaru close by; over time I grew used to him and now I just ignored his continual presence. Not only that, but his aura was not emitting the usual "perish, fools" vibe.

"Put down your sword, half breed. I did not come to fight," Sesshomaru said as he— in all of his killing perfection— walked out of the forest and onto the small path our group occupied. He was alone, but I could sense Jaken and Rin waiting farther away.

With both swords resting firmly at his hips, he looked more relaxed than usual. Well, when he wasn't holding his claws to your throat, I guess it'd be easy to feel more at ease around the demon. He still looked like he had an icicle stuck up his butt though, so I guess some things never change.

"Yea, right! If you didn't come here to fight, then what did you come here for?" InuYasha shrieked at the top of his lungs. This only caused me to roll my eyes again. I could feel the headache coming on from the volume of his voice. If my head hurt, I bet Sesshomaru's felt as if it would pop. (I briefly wondered if InuYasha screamed loud enough, if he could give himself a headache.)

With InuYasha, everyone always wanted something from him, that or someone was out to get him in one way or another. Sometimes this ended up being true, but most of the time his paranoia seemed plain ridiculous. Just the other day he almost refused to help an elderly woman because she had "looked at him the wrong way." Sometimes, InuYasha reminded me of one of the many jerks from the future. Most of the time, I just wanted to subdue him to Hades because of this. Then again, the times he lapsed into the gruff softie reminded me he wasn't completely rotten.

Sesshomaru grimaced and opened his mouth, snapping me out of my thoughts. That grimace was pretty much the most emotion that I had ever seen on his face. He always looked bored, even as he drove his claws through your gut.

"To become allies," Sesshomaru announced dryly, as if it was hard to get the words out of his mouth. There an awkward pause ensued and InuYasha almost dropped his sword; everyone else went still. I looked around suspiciously, waiting for something to explode.

"What?" InuYasha asked incredulously. The rest of the group leaned forward eagerly—the same question burning in the forefront of our minds. For once, I felt grateful he always demanded answers from his brother.

"You heard me, and this Sesshomaru does not repeat himself," he intoned, sounding bored. Everyone stared in disbelief; did that mean he hadn't come here ready to test out his swords? The blank looks from my friends let me know all of my friends felt as shocked as I did. Even Kirara let out a surprised, little meow.

Suddenly, InuYasha sprang into action. With his weapon at the ready, he leapt across the clearing towards his brother. "That's a lie!" he screamed, aiming his sword at his brother's throat. Clearly, he had a death wish.

"Sit boy!" I shouted at InuYasha, probably saving his life. The spell took effect almost immediately, and he went sailing into the ground. The very sight of my rash friend eating dirt and living another day cheered me up, but only by a small margin.

"Why the hell did ya do that for, wench?" He screamed, still face down, from the inside of his crater. Personally, I thought that he should be thanking me for saving his life. "Answer me!" he screamed.

"Because, InuYasha, you are the biggest idiot on the planet! Just listen to what your brother has to say! I can see why he tries to fight you constantly! If you were such a jerk to me all the time, I might want to beat on you too!" I yelled back, exasperated. I loved him, but dang he could be dense.

"Kikyo would never do this to me!" he shouted.

"I don't really care what Kikyo would or wouldn't do! I am not her! So shut the heck up and get that through your thick head!" I yelled back with equal fervor.

Sometimes, I didn't even know why I put up with the guy. He made me mad more than he made me happy. Moreover, he still loved with Kikyo. It didn't matter that if I loved him or not. When it came down to it, I knew whom he would choose. Not me. Even so, I found myself staying instead of leaving.

I guess you could call it love or even plain old stupidity. To tell you the truth, I wasn't even sure if I loved InuYasha as I once had. He had hurt me so many times, and I refused to trust him with my heart as I once did. Still, every time I saw him with Kikyo, I felt betrayed and a bit heartbroken, so that probably meant something.

I noticed that my friends all stared at me with big eyes, and I snapped out of my musing. Everyone looked shocked and I didn't know why. Then I remembered my outburst; it wasn't often I went around defending InuYasha's hated older brother, so I understood why my actions caught people off guard. Miroku, Sango, Shippou, Kirara, and even InuYasha remained, thankfully, silent. They all just stood there and looked at me.

Sesshomaru was the only person that hadn't frozen in terror. Instead, he let out a low chuckle, which was much more terrifying than anything I could ever do. Heck, this scared me more than Naraku at his most powerful.

After Sesshomaru's creepy and very scary chuckle, everyone finally settled down. By that, I mean InuYasha finally shut his big mouth long enough so Sesshomaru could talk. Everyone settled into an uncomfortable silence not knowing what to say to the icy demon lord.

Eventually, I awkwardly motioned for everyone to go off the side of the road and make an impromptu camp. Soon everyone sat down in a wide circle as I made a fire and put some water on to boil for tea. Demons drank tea, right?

"So why do you want to become allies, Lord Sesshomaru?" I finally asked as he sat down on the other side of the blazing fire I managed to get to spring to life. Thankfully, Shippou provided me with a steady stream of wood to feed the flames.

"Naraku has become too powerful. It makes sense joining forces with someone almost as strong as I," he said. I felt as if this was really the first time I'd heard him speak aside from the death threats he issued to InuYasha. Actually, it was the first nice thing that I could ever remember him saying about InuYasha. Maybe people do change, I thought to myself.

"Do ya think I'm gonna join forces with you just cuz you called me strong?" InuYasha barked from his tree. He'd jumped into a tall tree after I'd sat him and chewed him out in front of his brother—the fact that he stopped sulking long enough to answer surprised me.

"You mistake my meaning. I talk of the miko," Sesshomaru answered as I served Miroku and Sango their tea. InuYasha almost fell out of his tree and Miroku spit tea everywhere. Sesshomaru just paid me a compliment, which seemed even more threatening than his laughter.

Miroku made a perverted comment and InuYasha muttered something darkly under his breath. I just blushed like crazy; I could feel every part of my body, from the top of my head to the tips of my toes, turning red. I couldn't look Sesshomaru in the eye as I quickly gave him his tea. I swore that I heard him chuckle a second time as he muttered something about innocence under his breath. Now I know I imagined the whole ordeal.

I knew I'd never be able to look at the killing perfection the same way.

**A/N: Here's an updated version of this chapter! Those writing classes really paid off, and I'm anxious to show off my improvement! Leave me a review!**


	3. There is Always Hope

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 3: There is Always Hope<p>

I gazed into my teacup as we sat awkwardly around the campfire, searching for answers in my mug I knew I wouldn't find. Sighing, I swished the pale liquid around and thought about how I would do anything for a good, strong cup of coffee. In truth I knew I was trying to take my mind off Sesshomaru's strange behavior. I wondered if demons could get sick. Sesshomaru complementing me, allowing his brother to live, and even laughing seemed an impossible feat in the same millennium—the only rational explanation was that Sesshomaru had contracted some nasty demon bug.

"I must leave," Sesshomaru said abruptly, unfolding himself from his spot across from me. I looked up at him, wondering why he was leaving when our truce was still in its infancy. I thought he decided to travel with us so we could be ready for the final confrontation at any moment's notice. Suddenly, the sick theory didn't seem so bad.

"I must get my ward. I cannot leave her in the woods with Jaken," he explained, and I remembered how I had sensed them earlier. Honestly, I couldn't figure out why he would leave her with that unreliable, green toad in the first place. Surely, Sesshomaru could protect the little girl better than Jaken.

"Why didn't you just bring her with you?" I asked cautiously.

Before answering, his gaze flickered over to InuYasha and back to me. Suddenly, everything clicked into place. InuYasha tended to rush into things in a violent and rash manner— any person with a brain could count on that fact. By leaving her in the woods, this was Sesshomaru's way of protecting his ward from InuYasha's thoughtlessness.

"My reasons are my own. I will be back momentarily." Without another word, he turned around and walked towards Rin's anxious aura—back the way he came.

"What was that all about?" InuYasha asked as if he didn't already know. Shippou gave him a look that spoke volumes on InuYasha's stupidity; I really couldn't blame Shippou for it either. Every other member of the group thought the same thing as the small kit. InuYasha was the only member that had this nasty habit of not connecting the dots.

"He wanted to make sure that you didn't' kill his ward when you started swinging your sword around like a baka. It probably would have been bad for an alliance if you had killed his ward," Shippou stated. I hid a smile behind my hand, not wanting to rile InuYasha up, but unable to ignore the truth in the statement.

It took Shippou's words a few seconds to sink in. I saw the exact moment InuYasha understood Shippou's meaning as he flushed with anger. Sometimes I really thought that Shippou, who I'd come to think of as an adopted son, was smarter than InuYasha, but I always felt somewhat bad for having these thoughts.

"What do ya mean by that runt?" InuYasha screamed as he grabbed Shippou by his tail. With a vicious flip of the wrist, Shippou sailed through the air in wide circles. I winced when Shippou started letting out pained screams—he had a sensitive tail, and I felt bad for the poor kid.

"Kagome, HELP!" Shippou cried while dangling in the air from his tail.

I looked over at InuYasha, the threat clear in my eyes. I didn't feel like I even needed to say anything, but once again, InuYasha seemed unable to connect all the dots.

"InuYasha," I started. He looked at me and tugged on Shippou's tail again, daring me to do something about the action. My anger sparked, and what happened next was out of my control— well, mostly.

"SIT BOY!" I screamed. InuYasha let go of Shippou as he went sailing through the dirt. I wouldn't allow anyone to beat on Shippou—he may not be my blood son, but my maternal instincts still rose in a response to protect him. InuYasha never seemed to learn and I decided to teach him a lesson. This was nothing that a little pain couldn't solve.

"InuYasha, apologize to Shippou, and stop picking on him! If you do, I will S-I-T you until you fly through the other side of this planet!"

"I'm not saying anything!"

"SIT! SIT! SIT!" I screamed.

"Keh! Sorry ya runt! Don't be so annoying in the future!"

"I guess that works," I said, "Now, SIT!" I screamed, just for good measure. Maybe that would teach him to be less of a jerk.

Miroku and Sango both laughed uncontrollably as InuYasha's face made an even deeper crater in the ground. Smiling evilly, I admired my handy work. I probably went too far, but really, I couldn't find the desire in myself to care. Shippou jumped onto my shoulder and gave me a high-five.

"Baka never learns," Miroku laughed while wiping tears from his face.

"I think he secretly likes it," Sango whispered to no one in particular.

"I CAN STILL HEAR YOU!" InuYasha screamed from his hole. This time, the entire group couldn't help but laugh at his aggravation.

Shortly after InuYasha's episode, Sesshomaru emerged from the trees at the side of our little camp. Being the only one to notice him at first, I was the only one that saw him smirk a bit when he caught sight of the InuYasha shaped hole. Sesshomaru smile seemed weird at the very least. What struck me even deeper was the fact his smirk made him more beautiful. It should be against some universal law for men to be so beautiful. Then again, when did Sesshomaru follow anyone's rules?

His eyes met mine and I smiled back at him, trying to convey how great he looked when he smiled. He should smile more often, I thought distractedly, daydreaming a little. I probably looked like a creeper, smiling at him and likely drooling on myself. Then again, what did I care? He hated me and all the other humans on this planet anyway.

His smile quickly vanished; he must not want his Sir Popsicle reputation ruined. That or I freaked him out with my smiling. Either way, he didn't have to worry; I could keep his little secret— unlike InuYasha, I didn't want to die at the hand of Sesshomaru.

"Can I get you anything?" I asked Sesshomaru, trying to seem nice and less like a stalker. He just looked at me and didn't say a word. After a few seconds of staring, I took his silence as a no.

"Where is your ward?" I asked after yet another awkward moment of silence. I might have seen him smile, and heard him laugh, but that was the only break that I was going to get from this tough lord.

"Rin is here," said a little voice from behind Sesshomaru. We all looked down at Sesshomaru's legs and saw a small pair of arms hugging the circumference of one of them. He rolled his eyes and then bent down to grab one of the little arms. A small pair of hands latched onto his bigger one.

"This is Rin," he elaborated. I met the adorable little girl before, but for my friends this was the first time they saw her.

They gazed down at the adorable little girl holding Sesshomaru's hand in a death grip. With large brown eyes and raven black hair, she painted a cute picture. In fact, she looked similar to me—the major difference being my blue eyes and her brown ones. From the way she attempted to hide behind Sesshomaru's leg again, I deduced that she was wary of meeting new people.

What surprised me the most stemmed from the fact Sesshomaru allowed the little girl to grasp onto his hand in front of us. I knew if anyone else tried holding his hand, that poor soul would face torture and then a brutal murder. Rin served as the only proof that Sesshomaru's heart wasn't entirely frozen.

"Hey, she looks a little like Kagome," Shippou stated. Everybody else noticed and they stared between us in wonder, but Shippou didn't notice; his mind had already moved onto more childish things. Before I could stop him, Shippou ran over to Sesshomaru and Rin. "Do you want to play with me? Miss Kagome has really good candy and I would share with you."

Rin nodded and then looked up at Sesshomaru with big, pleading brown eyes. With a start I realized she was giving him puppy dog eyes! Apparently, even Sesshomaru couldn't resist the infamous look seeing as he nodded his approval before Rin dropped his hand and excitedly chased after Shippou.

A strange look shaped his features—one I didn't know he had the capability of wearing. It was a look of adoration for the little girl. In that moment he looked like a father watching his little girl go make her first friends. The look seemed full of love and bit of fear—a look many parents wear and even I've worn.

We all watched the children run off to go play. I smiled as I watched Shippou finally playing with someone his own age. Even though he hid it, I knew he got lonely while we traveled; I welcomed the distraction of having another child to play with him.

We watched as the children started up a game of tag— all of us basking in the rare sound of laughter. Even Sesshomaru looked content. After a while I decided to turn back to my task: making dinner. After playing so hard, I knew that Shippou would be starving. Everything was quiet for a moment, but then Miroku had to open his mouth.

"You know Kagome, Sesshomaru's ward does look a lot like you. You could be sisters, or better yet, mother and daughter. Is there anything that you want to tell us, a hidden past maybe? A one night stand that led to a child?" With satisfaction I watched as Sango slapped Miroku across the face. After a moment of thought, she turned back to him and let her fist fly.

"Pervert!" she screamed as he landed flat on his back. "You don't just ask stuff like that! I can't believe your nerve1"

"We all know that Kagome is a horrible liar, so there is no way that she could have hidden that from us. Besides, she is so stupidly innocent that there is no way in hell that she could have already had sex." InuYasha stated quite bluntly. I turned bright red as he displayed my non-existent sex-life on the metaphorical table. Not to mention that Miroku threw it out there in front of one of the most beautiful creatures in existence.

"SIT!" I screamed, trying to ignore the intense blush creeping across my body. I could feel Sesshomaru's gaze, which certainly didn't help my coloring.

"What the hell Kagome?" he screamed. "We all know that you are a virgin!"

"SIT! SIT! SIT!"

Seeing him dusting the dirt from his form gave me a sense of satisfaction I refused to feel guilty about. An evil smile spread across my face and I felt tempted to sit him some more. I probably should feel guilty, but I really didn't. The baka got what he deserved. Two for Kagome, zero for InuYasha.

"Okay Kagome, what the perverts meant to ask was: 'Do you know why Sesshomaru's ward looks like you? We all know that it probably confuses you as much as it confuses us.' I know I am wondering, Kagome. It does seem odd," Sango said.

After the flush in my cheeks died down, and my anger fizzled out, I answered. "I don't really know; I couldn't tell you. I've only seen the little girl a few times, but this is the first time that I realized that she that she resembles me. She could be a distant ancestor, but then again, I honestly couldn't tell you. Hey, Sesshomaru, do you know anything about this? She is your ward after-all."

He looked at me with his golden eyes. Across the fire in the fading sunlight, he looked just as confused as I did—if not more. I could see the gears turning in his head as he tried to sort out the puzzle. His golden eyes locked onto mine, and for a split second those eyes drew me into him.

"I do not know. She was only a beaten village orphan when I found her. She does not speak of her parents or of her time in the village," he answered me. I looked into his golden eyes, and even though his face was a careful, blank mask, I saw the concealed sadness and anger swimming in their depths. Rin's past must bother him, especially not knowing all the details. For a moment I wanted to hug him, but I knew trying would get my heart ripped out, alliance or not.

"Well, I guess we will never know! Maybe it's just a weird coincidence. Now who is hungry?" I said quickly, trying to escape the sadness and temptation of hugging the beautiful demon.

"Shippou, Rin, the food is ready! You better get over here if you are hungry!" I shouted to them.

"We're coming!" both children yelled and came rushing over. I dished out all the food and retreated to eat mine in silence. I felt Sesshomaru's penetrating gaze flicker towards me a few times, but I ignored him. Meeting those golden eyes only reminded me of all the sadness I hid behind my own.

The rest of the group talked quietly amongst themselves. Shippou and Rin talked with Sesshomaru. Miroku, Sango, and even InuYasha chatted in a small group to my left. As they talked I felt the tugging on my soul, and I knew Kikyo was near. When InuYasha looked up in her general direction, I knew that he would be leaving us tonight. With a sigh, I continued eating by myself until I finished my meal.

After dinner ended we fell into the normal routine. Well, as normal as the routine could be with our new additions. After stuffing ourselves at dinner, Sango, Shippou, Rin, and I all decided to go bathe. The children were excited to get the chance to play in the water, and they walked slightly ahead of Sango and me. Sango looked over at me and I already knew what she was going to ask.

"Hey, are you feeling okay Kagome? You have been quite ever since dinner. I know that InuYasha embarrassed you earlier, but I don't think that's the reason you are upset." Sango was the closest thing I had to a sister, and she knew me as such. She always knew when something upset me.

"You're right, that isn't the reason that I'm upset. InuYasha is going to leave tonight," I sighed, feeling the familiar pull on my soul. You would think that after all this time, I would get used to it but I never did.

"Wait, how do you know?" she asked me, the confusion evident in her voice.

"You know how Kikyo holds a piece of my soul?" She nodded. "Well, I can feel when she is coming closer. Whenever she gets close, it's like the other piece of my soul strains to come back. Right now, I can feel that she is coming this way. It feels like she is getting close. I noticed during dinner, and it kind of upset me."

"Why do you put up with this Kagome?" Sango asked me. "I can barely put up with Miroku's flirting and womanizing; I don't think I would be able to handle it if he left me for someone else all the time."

I sighed and looked over to Sango. I knew that she loved Miroku, even if she wouldn't admit this fact to herself. I also knew that Miroku loved Sango; he just flirted with all those women to get a rise out of her.

"Sango, some part of me will always love InuYasha, and I can't help it. As much as his going to her hurts me, I want him to be happy. If that means he is happier with someone else, I won't stop him. You might not understand, but Kikyo was his first love. I could never take her place, and I have accepted this. It breaks me every time he goes to her, but as long as it makes him happy, then so be it. It might not be fair to me, but that's love. I never claimed that I was smart when it came to InuYasha."

"Kagome, you have much too kind of a heart," she sighed, putting her arm around me for a little hug as we walked. "You are much too good for that idiot! I think that you should beat the crap out of him and then break up with him. You can borrow some of my weapons if you want." The evil gleam in her eyes almost had me backing away from her.

Laughter erupted from my throat, and I smiled thankfully. Sango knew how to make me feel better. I knew I should take her advice and move on from InuYasha, but something—whether fear or love, I couldn't say—stopped me from doing so. Even though I knew I wouldn't take her advice, it seemed tempting and put a spring back into my step.

We arrived at the hot spring and found Shippou and Rin already playing in the water. Sango and I quickly undressed and slipped into the hot water with them. As the hot water kissed my body and soothed my aching muscles, I couldn't contain my sigh of bliss.

Sango and I washed our hair in silence, enjoying the hot water and the fragrant smell of the shampoo in the air. Once we finished, we called Rin over to the side of the springs. I watched as she delighted in picking between the different shampoos. We then helped her wash her hair and condition the strands to glossy perfection. She loved all the womanly attention, and she kept thanking us repeatedly.

Soon after, we found ourselves climbing out and drying. I laughed as the glowing young girl ushered us to dress so she could go show off her pretty hair to her Lord Sesshomaru. My mood improved further as I watched the innocent young girl skipping ahead of me.

The world always contains good for those who look. Even if this good didn't involve me directly, I felt joy that I could witness or take part in the creation of this good. There is always something to look forward to, and that alone gave me hope for my future.

**A/N: I changed quite a bit of this. Reading through physically hurt because my seventh grade version of Kagome seemed... wrong. I fixed that along with a lot of grammar/ diction issues. Sesshomaru is more sophisticated this go-round, and I'm thankful for that! It should be a lot easier to read! Leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	4. Nightmares

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 4: Nightmares<p>

"I'm up!" I said as I shot up in my sleeping bag. The little body next to mine let out a pained sob, and I knew Shippou's restless rolling and crying woke me. It seemed he was having another nightmare. His last nightmare took place over a month ago, so this one caught me a little off guard. I didn't want to look over and witness the pain on his face, but I knew I had to.

I looked over at Shippou; sweat and tears mixed on his face, causing it to shine in the faint light of the dying fire. He must have been rolling around for quite a while, because his hair stuck to his head in matted clumps. As I watched, he rolled over restlessly and cried out once more. I could tell he remained ensnared in his nightmare. My maternal instincts kicked in and I pulled him to my lap, hugging him and trying to soothe his fears.

"Shhhh, it's okay Shippou, wake up. You just had a nightmare. It's all okay; everything is going to be fine," I whispered sweet nothings into his ear as I tucked him under my chin and rocked him back and forth. Eventually he stopped sobbing, and I deemed it safe to start asking questions. "Do you want to talk about it? It might make you feel better, but you don't have to," I whispered into his ear.

"Kagome, I was so scared! I thought that you were going to leave me!" he cried, bringing on another round of violent sobbing. A pang went through my heart; it always hurt when he dreamed of me leaving.

"It was just a bad dream honey, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." I ran my fingers through his sweat-slicked hair, hoping that my touch would calm him. His shaking wouldn't subside, so I continued rocking him and muttering reassurances in his ear. "I am not going to leave you Shippou; I will always be nearby when you need me. Nothing in this universe could keep me away from you. Even if time itself decided to close me off, I would find a way to come back to you," I promised. Eventually he calmed down enough to stop shaking, but I still rocked him until he was half-asleep.

I tucked him into my sleeping bag and looked around for InuYasha. I knew all the noise probably woke him, and the fact he wasn't throwing a fit yet stupefied me. Even as I scanned the trees, I knew in my heart that I wouldn't find his form in any of the nearby trees.

"I'll be right back Shippou. I have to look for InuYasha. I need to make sure that he is okay," I whispered in his ear, so that he knew I wasn't leaving him.

"Okay Mama, come back soon," he mumbled, already halfway gone. How quickly children fell asleep never ceased to amaze me. If he could face his fears and return to dreamland, I could walk into the woods and make sure my friend was okay. I gathered my courage and left the warm glow of the campfire.

Following where my soul pulled me the strongest, I walked into the woods using my hands as a guide; I already knew what I was going to see, and the dread weighed down on my heart and spirit. The glowing light of the soul stealers just confirmed my fears. When I saw that InuYasha was safe, as in not going to hell, I turned right back around and returned in the direction I came.

Stumbling back to camp, I tried convincing myself that I didn't care—knowing this was just another lie I told myself. I knew that InuYasha made his choice long ago, and telling myself any different would be denying the inevitable truth. InuYasha chose Kikyo, and I accepted this fact. I wanted his happiness even if that happiness didn't involve me in the way I wanted it to.

I told myself this as I walked back to camp, but I still couldn't staunch the flow of tears trickling down my face. Even though I knew InuYasha made his choice still didn't stop his decision from hurting. I knew that when it came down to it, he would always choose. I slipped back into my sleeping bag, and pulled Shippou close to me, trying to make myself feel better. All I could think about was Kikyo and InuYasha doing God knows what. Drifting back to sleep, I tried to nurse the pieces of my broken heart back together.

* * *

><p>I ran through the trees towards the magnificent white light highlighting the edges of the forest. The dazzling white light beckoned me from my spot within the trees, and I ran faster to get to grasp the playful entity. With each stride, I got closer to my destination, and my excitement grew; I felt like dancing and cheering. So many emotions passed through me but the overwhelming feeling was of magic. I felt magical and powerful. I flew over the ground, feeling fast and free, just as a goddess would. My feet barely skimmed the ground, and I felt good for the first time in a long time.<p>

Finally, I broke free of the trees and I stepped out into a picturesque clearing dropping off in the form of a cliff. The wind blew the smell of salt and brine to me, and the sun danced bright and cheerful on my skin. It felt perfect, just as I knew it would. I closed my eyes fleetingly and then admired the beauty of my feelings, still feeling every bit like a goddess. I allowed the magic of the moment to wash over me, and I let out a girly laugh.

I stood there for a while until a nagging thought came into my mind. What dwelled at the bottom of the cliff? Unable to tame my curiosity, I went over to the edge and peered over the side; the wall of rock dropped off into the ocean below where sharp rocks broke the surface of the churning water. I watched with mild fascination as the surf crashed violently into the side of the cliff with a ferocious type of beauty. The drop itself was about 200 feet down. Like everything around me, this too was beautiful, and I couldn't contain the mirthful laugh that escaped me for a second time that day.

I heard a twig snap behind me and looked up. As Kikyo emerged from the woods, I saw she had her bow drawn, pointing an arrow straight at my heart. She studied me with a grim determination as her unbound hair flickered all around her in the breeze. There a fiery look occupied her eyes and I knew I wouldn't leave unscathed. Suddenly, all the joy drained out of me and I no longer felt the power of a goddess.

"Kikyo, you don't have to do this!" I shouted to her, frantically trying to make her change her mind. I didn't want to die, especially by Kikyo's hands.

"Yes I do! You get in the way of everything! You are nothing but a stupid copy of myself. You will never do anything as good as I will! You will never be as powerful, and you will never hold InuYasha's heart!" she shouted back to me. Her words cut me deep, and I knew I couldn't persuade her. Besides, what could I say when she only spoke the truth? I was only a little girl with a borrowed life attempting to emulate the goddess standing before me.

I braced myself for the impact of the arrow, and the all-consuming pain I knew it would bring. Before she could release her arrow though, a figure clad in red with silver hair emerged from the trees. I made eye contact with the figure, and he gave me a cold look. Slowly, I realized the red figure belonged to InuYasha. He came to save me!

"InuYasha!" Kikyo and I screamed together. My scream sounded desperate, but Kikyo's was a scream of elation. My heart sank further in my chest as each second ticked past, and dread pooled in my stomach. I knew whom InuYasha was going to choose; I had always known.

"InuYasha, please help me!" I begged him, even though I knew my actions were pointless. Much to my displeasure, he stepped forward, shaking his head as he wrapped his arms around Kikyo. He gave her a small kiss before looking back at me. His cold eyes filled with revulsion as he turned to me. On the inside I fell into a million, tiny pieces, but on the outside I felt nothing—just blank and numb.

"Kikyo's right, how could I love the copy when I have the original right here next to me? I only used you as a 'shard detector'. You never meant anything to me. How could you? You are weak, ugly, and so easy to manipulate. It was effortless getting you to fall in love with me, and it was even simpler crushing your spirit. I will enjoy watching you die."

Each word cut me as no knife ever could. So much pain coursed through my being that I would welcome death with open arms at this point. I wanted to forget the hateful look InuYasha gave me. I wanted to forget that I even loved him in the first place.

"You are nothing to me," he said, taking Kikyo's hand.

Any strength left in my body disappeared, and I collapsed onto the ground. I ignored the tears streaming freely down my face as the bitter thoughts poisoned my mind. I looked down at my hands and realized I agreed with the duo. Compared to Kikyo, I amounted to nothing. She was stronger, prettier, and better at the tasks I set out to accomplish. Why should I even seek to compare myself to her?

Kikyo placed her bow on the ground and walked towards me. A look of determination rooted itself on her face. She stood in front of me and put her hands on my shoulders; I already knew what she would do next.

"Why?" I asked, looking up at her. Any hope that I might have possessed evaporated as soon as she laid her hands on my shoulders.

"Because you are nothing but the copy," she stated as she pushed me over the edge and down to a certain death. I looked up to see both of their laughing faces, and the joy they received from watching me fall; my heart shattered into a billion more pieces, too broken to ever hope for repair. Closing my eyes, I turned to face my demise, letting the wind rush past me; I refused to watch them laugh at me anymore.

Just as I felt the impact from the rocks, I shot straight up in my sleeping bag. My heart pounded in my chest, and my labored breathing sounded like I just ran a marathon. Tears streamed down my face, and I couldn't place how I came to be in a sleeping bag. What happened to the cliff? As I looked around, I realized it had only been a nightmare. I hadn't really been there on the cliff, Kikyo wasn't here; I was fine.

You are nothing but the copy. Kikyo's words from the dream drifted through my mind, and I sagged back down to my sleeping bag. Just because the words came from a dream didn't mean they didn't ring true. They expressed my worst fears. For all I knew, InuYasha probably felt that way too.

I looked over to InuYasha, the man in question. He peacefully slept propped against the tree as at thick branch supported him from underneath. Images from my dream flickered through my mind- specifically of his laughing face as I fell to my death. Leaving salty trails, tears started streaming down my face. As much as I wanted to scream, cry, or make a scene, I wouldn't. Nobody needed a reminder of my weakness.

I laid in the confines of my sleeping bag think trying to push the sadness away, yet failing at the deceivingly simple task. I tried to forget about the dream, but I couldn't. It kept creeping up on me and bringing back the wretched feelings I felt desperate to avoid. It's hard to forget the very thing that tears you to pieces—the one thing I was most scared of in the world.

After a while tears turned into short gasps of air that I knew would eventually turn into sobs. I lurched out of my sleeping bag, and quickly grabbed my backpack, not wanting to wake anyone, and not wanting to stay. All I knew is that I felt the animal need to flee before InuYasha woke up and demanded an explanation that I wouldn't be able to give him. I just had to get away.

I ran to the edge of the woods and looked back at InuYasha's face. Surprisingly, the hanyou remained sleeping. With the amount of noise I made, I knew he should probably be awake and screaming at me. His face looked peaceful in slumber and reminded me of my nightmare—the part when he had been with Kikyo. Not wanting InuYasha or anyone else to follow me, I put a sound barrier in place, sending a silent nod of thanks to Kaede.

I ran through the woods trying to dodge trees since I couldn't see through the tears still streaming down my face. I was thankful that I put up the barrier, because now I could barely contain the animal sounding sobs emanating from my body. My world seemed to spin around me and I felt that I didn't have any control. I had no idea where I was heading; all I knew was that I needed time to work through this is private. Having InuYasha scream at me more wouldn't help—besides, I'd be back as soon as I could calm down.

A few times, I almost dropped my pack, but I always managed to keep it on my back. In the dark branches and thorns tore at my skin and clothes, causing small cuts and scrapes to form all over my body. Instead of stopping, I ignored them; I wanted to be far away from InuYasha and the horrors of my nightmare, and fast. The physical pain seemed like nothing compared to what I felt on the inside.

Whenever I felt like stopping, the vision of InuYasha laughing fueled my legs to keep going. Eventually, I stopped to gasp for air in fear of dying from the lack of oxygen. I leaned against a tree and once I could breathe again, I looked up. In the distance I saw steam rising from a nearby hot spring. Perfect. I loved that no matter where you were in feudal Japan, you could always find a hot spring nearby.

The pink and orange dawn filtered through the thinning leaves as I walked to the steaming pool of water. When I left darkness followed me, and I gave thanks that the sun finally decided to rise. Watching the reflection of the sunrise bounce off the calm water of the spring, I decided to get down to business.

I pulled out my shampoo, conditioner, body wash, razor, and my towel. Quickly I changed out of my sweaty, bloodstained clothes and slipped into the steamy waters of the spring. I sighed in relief as the hot water soothed my aching muscles. The long run exhausted me, and I was grateful the Gods allowed me to happen across this spring. I really needed this chance to relax in peace.

Not allowing myself time to think, I turned around and grabbed my body wash and razor. Making quick work of the task, I lathered up and shaved. All too soon, I finished and started shampooing my hair. My long tresses had tangled and matted from a combination of the nightmare and the running.

After I allowed the hot water to wash away the shampoo from my hair, I grabbed my conditioner and got to work. I delicately worked the substance through the length of my hair, allowing it to soak in as my hair turned to silk beneath my fingers. Once again, I finished too soon.

I slipped down into the water and remembered the reason I ended up here. I looked up at the sky and tried to hold back the tears forcing their way to the surface. I knew they came from a dream, but I couldn't shake Kikyo's words and how deep they cut me. I knew that there was never any competition between the two of us; she would always be InuYasha's choice. How was I supposed to compare? After all, I was just the copy. I would never amount to anything in his eyes.

Quickly, my sadness turned into anger. I stood up and shook my head. Why did I have to be so sad all the time? Why did I even have to compete with Kikyo? We were NOT the same person. Besides, she died a long time ago. You would think InuYasha's choice would be obvious. Why would he choose some stupid clay pot over a living and breathing woman? I was real, and I was right there waiting for him to notice me.

Abruptly my anger turned into guilt. I shouldn't think of Kikyo in that way. She couldn't help that she died. Kikyo couldn't help the way she came back into this world. Anyway, InuYasha loved her first, it was only right he stayed by her side. She was his first love, and the love they shared had been quite real. Once again, my emotions bested me and I felt the prickle of tears behind my eyes; I was an emotional wreck.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked bitterly. I never expected an answer for my question, and when I received one, I nearly jumped out of my skin.

"It depends, Miko," Sesshomaru answered from somewhere behind me.

**A/N: Dun Dun Dun! Cliffie! I hope you like it! Review! I'm sick and they help me feel better! This is edited and revised. A lot.**


	5. Friends

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 5: Friends<p>

I imagined his voice. I simply rationalized my own inner musings by conjuring up his voice. At least, this is what I told myself. Still, I couldn't will myself to believe that the pulsing of his aura came from my imagination.

I whirled around and sure enough, Sesshomaru stood behind me looking like Adonis in the pale morning light. As he leaned against a tree, I gazed at him and wondered why he came in the first place. As far as I knew, he hated my guts. He'd probably come to finish me off, and I had just made it really easy for him. I was alone in the middle of nowhere; the water from the hot spring would probably wash away Sesshomaru's scent, and my friends would never know who killed me.

Thinking about my death, I suddenly remembered my state of nakedness; I felt my body flushing bright red as I covered myself and frantically searched for my towel. When I finally spotted the darned thing, I realized that It was right next to Sesshomaru. I shrieked in aggravation before plunging down into the water to better hide my lady bits from the cold demon in front of me. I'm sure he'd seen many women before, but he wasn't going to see me naked, especially when I probably couldn't compete with any of those women.

"Sesshomaru, I didn't take you to be a pervert like Miroku! Have some decency and turn around! What are you even doing here?" I demanded.

Much to my surprise, and relief, Sesshomaru obliged with only a slight roll of the eyes. The fact he hadn't decapitated me for ordering him around was a miracle in itself. I was lucky to be alive (see scenario above). I would take alive and embarrassed over dead and naked any day.

"Miko, you have nothing that I haven't already seen," he said, confirming my fears. I bet he was used to naked women throwing themselves at his feet— that stupid Adonis lookalike.

"Yea, well, that doesn't mean that many men have seen me naked! You still didn't answer my question. Why are you here?" I blushed, feeling embarrassed at the thought of Sesshomaru seeing… things.

"I woke to find you missing, so I followed your scent here for lack of anything better to do. Based on your tears and sound barrier, I assumed you didn't want the half-wit to follow you," he admitted in a bored sounding voice. The concept threw me off, and I wasn't sure whether to be flattered, or offended. I decided to feel flattered since this powerful demon decided to find me.

"Umm, I guess you're right. Thanks." The silence that followed was awkward to say the least. With a bit of surprise, I realized that Sesshomaru's calling InuYasha a half-wit really hadn't bothered me until I started thinking about the insult. Then again, this sort of exchange seemed common between the two brothers. My head would pop if I had to act indignant every time they insulted each other.

"What propelled you to run through the forest miko?" he suddenly asked.

"I had a nightmare about Kikyo; it was nothing out of the ordinary. Why do you want to know?"

"You are more valuable to this Sesshomaru alive than you are dead. You happen to be crucial in defeating Naraku, and I need you as an ally," he said, sounding bored. His bored tone set something off inside me.

"I thought you hated humans. Aren't we just filth compared to you demons?" I laced my words with so much venom that it surprised me. If I didn't know any better, I would say that Sesshomaru flinched at my icy tone.

"If I were a lesser being, I would accuse you of sounding like this Sesshomaru. Being cold does not suit you, miko. My reasons for disliking humans are simple; most of them are beneath my notice because they are all the same and a good number of them have an aversion to bathing." He did have a point there; nobody in this era seemed to understand the importance of hygiene.

"So what if I'm a little bitter; I think that I've done a good job of not being bitter up until now. Not everyone can hide behind an impenetrable mask of ice as you do. I don't even think that I would want to live like that," I spat out at him, taking all of my anger out on him. "You just hide all of your emotions and bottle everything up inside. It's not healthy and it's certainly not the way that I want to live." I shot out of the water and marched over to my towel. I wrapped it around my body angrily and Sesshomaru turned towards me, his eyebrow raised.

"Emotions make you weak, Miko. You should know this. That I had to come and retrieve you is proof enough," he said giving me a distasteful look.

"Forgive me, your highness! I can't help that I have emotions. I had a horrible dream and want a little time away from the group, so what? And just for your information, emotions don't make you weak. Hiding everything makes you a coward. You know what, I don't have to stand here, soaking wet, naked, and shivering while you call me weak. I'm going to leave and put on my clothes. If you want to kill me, then you can do it after I'm dressed. There's no way in hell that I'm dying naked."

Bending over, started digging around in my bag, mumbling curses at the stupid demon behind me while making sure that I kept myself, erm, covered. After a little bit of digging I pulled out some clean clothes and a plastic bag to hold my ruined ones. I shoved the tattered pajamas in there and then proceeded to shove the bundle into my bag roughly. I marched away from Sesshomaru and got dressed where he couldn't see me. When I finished, I walked back to where I left him.

"Okay, you can kill me now. Well, at least you can try," I said, defiantly crossing my arms over my chest.

Sesshomaru looked at me and smirked. He seemed entirely too smug; as if he knew a secret that I didn't

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I growled.

"Welcome back, Miko," he said before walking back in the direction that he came.

A smile broke out on my face when I realized what he accomplished. He must have known that if he pushed my buttons, I would get angry and return to my normal self. Well played Sesshomaru, well played.

I followed him back to camp, amazed at how far I ran earlier. When I could see the fire from camp, I stopped Sesshomaru. I wanted to say this before InuYasha caught my scent and started screaming.

"Hey, thanks for bringing me back to my senses. If I start to act like that again don't be afraid to be slightly abusive," I smiled.

"Hn."

"I guess we better go deal with InuYasha," I sighed. We started walking again, and all too soon, we were back at camp.

Everyone looked up at me almost immediately. Five pairs of eyes contained worry and one set blazed with anger. One hundred dollars says you guess correctly who the angry eyes belonged to.

"Where were you, Miss Kagome? Rin was worried that monsters had eaten you! InuYasha said that you were with Sesshomaru doing 'things.' He wouldn't tell me what those things were, because Miss Sango wouldn't let him!" the adorable little girl gushed at me with wide brown eyes.

"Yea, are you okay?" Shippou asked, giving Sesshomaru a suspicious look.

"Yea guys, I'm fine. I just went for a trip to the hot springs because I couldn't sleep. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry anyone," I said, leaving out just a little bit of the story. Like the part where Sesshomaru saw me naked. Then again, I bet InuYasha would love to hear all about that…

"So you ditched us to go whore it up with Sesshomaru at the hot springs, didn't ya? I bet you loved bedding with a real demon, huh? I know that you fell in love with me quick, but I never expected you to keep things in the family," InuYasha said with a gleam of jealousy in his eyes.

I heard an audible gasp as he flung the last round of hateful words at me. No one in the group expected him to be this cruel to me. I had grown used to his insults, but as he accused me of being a whore, every word felt like a slap to the face. From the way my friends acted around me, I could sense they felt the same way. I watched as Miroku held Sango back so that she didn't kill the insensitive hanyou. InuYasha acted like a jerk sometimes, but never before had he been this cruel to me, and certainly not in front for my adopted family.

I felt tears welling up in my eyes, and then I changed my mind and decided to get very angry. Sure his words hurt me, but there was no way in hell I would allow InuYasha the satisfaction of winning.

"I cannot believe you have the nerve to speak to me as if I am some common whore. What gives you the right to judge me? I haven't done anything wrong. Even if I had decided to sleep with Sesshomaru, that would be none of your business! You are the one that decided to sneak off last night to meet up with Kikyo! I had a horrible dream and I woke up wanting to do nothing more than take a bath. What's wrong with that? If I hadn't gone, you'd just be complaining at me right now to get the smell of hear off my disgusting human body! So do you know what? I don't want to hear anything from you!" By the time I finished my speech, I ended up screaming in InuYasha's face.

"I didn't sneak off to sleep around behind your back! If you're gonna act like a slut, then don't get pissy when I call you out—just admit it! I never expected you would become a cheap whore!" InuYasha screamed right back in my face.

In a second of white-hot fury, I reached out and slapped InuYasha across the face. The slap rang out across the camp as the impact forced InuYasha's face to the left side. I noticed my hand left a bright red mark glowing across his cheek. As he slowly turned his head back towards me, the glint in his eyes made me panic. For a second I believed he'd hit me back.

Suddenly a blur of silver and white rushed between InuYasha and me. Before any of us truly comprehended what happened, InuYasha was sailing through the tress as Sesshomaru alone stood in the space before me. After a second he followed InuYasha into the woods and we heard the impact of flesh on flesh. I winced as InuYasha flew back into the camp to land near my feet for barely a second before Sesshomaru dangled him by his neck in midair.

"You show respect to your pack mate and alpha. Do not taint this family more than you already have. If you used your nose, maybe you would realize the miko speaks only the truth. You are wrong and I suggest you show respect to those more powerful than you in the future."

When he finished with the lesson, Sesshomaru threw InuYasha to the side as if he was nothing but an old stuffed animal before he took up his customary pose under a tree. I don't know if it was accidental or aimed, but InuYasha hit a tree and the impact rendered him unconscious. This left the rest of my friends staring at Sesshomaru in a mixture of awe, gratitude, and even a hint of fear. I felt a grin break out across my face—Sesshomaru managed to pull me out of my negative mood earlier, and now he tried to teach InuYasha some manners. This day was getting better and better.

"Did you guys hear that? I'm the Alpha," I said knowing my revelation would break the tension. The rest of the group laughed at my smugness.

"Kagome, I think you're the only one that didn't know this to begin with. Well, you and InuYasha that is," Miroku laughed. I couldn't help but beam when the rest of my friends joined in on the laughter.

The rest of the day I watched as my friends tiptoed around Sesshomaru—they were treating him as if he were a ticking time bomb. I found something extremely hysterical while watching Miroku trying to make conversation without offending Sesshomaru. When I couldn't contain my laughter, Miroku gave and settled for talking to Sango in hushed whispers.

Taking a chance to enjoy the rare quiet, we left InuYasha asleep against the tree, only making sure he was breathing. A few hours later when he awoke, he only shook his head a few times before glaring at Sesshomaru. I saw it as a blessing he didn't try to start anything up with his brother. My feelings toward InuYasha may be jumbled at the moment, but I didn't want to see him get hurt. If he pushed his brother into another fight, Sesshomaru would give him more than a bump on the head.

When InuYasha started moving around, the position of the sun signaled it was already past noon. Seeing the time, I knew it would be pointless to pack up the group for travel, so I made the executive decision to stay at the camp another night. The promise of resting for an entire day seemed to great to pass up—not to mention this gave Shippou and Rin the opportunity to play and actually behave as children should.

We all spent the day napping in the sunshine or relaxing against the trees. With the sun shining and the gentle breeze passing over us, the day seemed perfect for relaxing. I relished in the sound of Rin and Shippou's laughter as they played tag, hide and seek, and many other games. I watched as Sango and Miroku lounged against Kirara, practically cuddling all day. The pair both sported content smiles and I made a mental not to drill Sango for details later. My heart warmed as I watched the majority of my friends seeming so happy.

I spent the majority of the day stretched under the shade of a tree. Sometimes Rin and Shippou managed to draw me into a game, but mostly I took advantage of the time to relax. When I wasn't busy, I allowed my mind to wander; I thought about everything and nothing at all. Idly, I wondered when I would have the chance to go visit my mother. Probably a month had passed since I last saw her, and I felt the ache of her absence. In addition to missing my mother, I pondered when I could approach InuYasha without fear of him biting off my head.

As for the demons of the group, InuYasha and Sesshomaru chose to be anti-social. Sesshomaru sat against the base of a tree with his arm propped up on his knee as he stared blankly into space. InuYasha still seemed mad as he perched in a tree at the edge of camp and sulked. He looked so dejected I felt a little bad for him—but not bad enough seeing as I still felt the sharp pangs of annoyance towards what he said to me earlier.

Closing my eyes, I tired to clear my mind. I refused to think of InuYasha—I wouldn't ruin my day by thinking how his words hurt earlier. I ignored my thoughts about Sesshomaru and his strangely warm behavior earlier. I was just going to sit there and allow the rays of sun filtering through the leaves wash over me until I was warm and floating in the land of pleasant nothings. I had almost achieved this when someone decided to plop down in the spot next to me.

"Kagome," someone said softly—so softly I wasn't sure I heard my hand in the first place. I cracked my eyes and saw that InuYasha was sitting next to me. I blinked furiously as I pushed myself off the ground and then rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't imagining things. When InuYasha stayed firmly in place, I pinched myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

"Oi, stupid, you're awake. I'm really here," he said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Okay, I see that now. So what do you want, InuYasha?" I asked, still angry and hurt.

"I'm sorry Kagome," he said so quickly and quietly that his words sounded like I'msorry'Gome.

My eyes widened in disbelief and I realized he had just apologized to me. With his ears pressed flat against his head and his refusal to meet my gaze, he looked every bit like a whipped puppy. As he peeked up at me, he misread my disbelief as anger.

"I mean it too. I shouldn't have called you those things or accused you of doing that stuff with Sesshomaru. I know that you would never do that, I just don't think," he said gruffly. "If I ever do that again, just sit me to hell and I'll stop. I'll try to be better, I swear. Please forgive me," he begged.

He words registered, and before I could think otherwise I threw myself at InuYasha in a bone-crushing hug. "Of course I'll forgive you!" I laughed into his ears. I didn't care if my actions seemed crazy; I couldn't help it. InuYasha apologized and now I had my friend back.

He sighted in relief and wrapped his arms around me to return my hug. He buried his nose in my hair and whispers, "Thanks, Kagome."

After our hug InuYasha took me up into a tree so we could watch everything from the perspective of the Gods. The action was uncomplicated—just like before I fell in love with him and Naraku hadn't come along to mess up everything. I loved spending that time with him just as his friend, and for the first time in a long time I felt some of my heartache ease away.

We descended after the sun set, but I still felt like I was soaring on cloud nine. I cooked dinner and everything seemed good. As I settled down for bed, I did so with a smile on my face, not noticing the death glares Sesshomaru had been sending at InuYasha all night long.

**A/N: Hello my lovelies! I hope that you enjoy my story so far! I've been working really hard to polish this up and republish it :) For those of you that have been on board since the very beginning, what do you think of this revision. For you newcomers, are you enjoying my little story so far? Leave a review and let me know what you think! I try to respond to all of them!**


	6. My Worst Fears are Realized

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 6: My Worst Fears Are Realized<p>

My mind drifted in lazy circles, caught between that peaceful place somewhere between waking and sleeping. Something awoke me from my light slumber, but I couldn't remember what as my mind floated back to consciousness. I looked around the camp, taking inventory of everyone and making sure that everything was as it should be. Rin and Shippou slept peacefully, tucked into the sleeping bag next to me. Sango and Miroku slept so close together they might as well be cuddling. InuYasha had taken his customary spot in a tree, and Sesshomaru sat at the base of a tree opposite to InuYasha.

I knew that whatever amount of sleep I managed to get hadn't lasted long, seeing as the wood we banked for the fire seemed mostly intact, and the fire itself burned warm and brightly. Everything appeared fine, so I knew I should probably get back to bed. I rolled onto my back and gazed up through the sparse leaves at what I could see at the stars, trying to clear my mind and sleep.

"Kagome," came the soft caress of a whisper just as I felt myself drifting off to sleep. I swore I heard my name whispered from within the dark confines of the nearby forest. I couldn't tell if the voice belonged to a male or female, but I knew I certainly heard something. I pushed myself into a seated position and scanned the area to see if anyone stood at the edge of camp. I saw no one in the dim ring of the fire, and the shadows stayed still. After a few minutes of listening, I decided I imagined the sound of my name.

"Kagome," came the same whisper once more. My eyes shot open as I pushed myself off the ground and scanned the area beyond our little camp. I was about to lie down again when I saw a flash of white flicker in the shadows. I looked over to Sesshomaru and InuYasha, and with a start, I realized they were both sleeping. If they could sleep through this disturbance, then whatever was out there couldn't be anything very powerful. With the people supposed to be on watch sleeping, I decided I needed to check the situation out for myself. The voice had called my name, after all. I slipped out of the warm confines of my sleeping bag and grabbed my bow and quiver of arrows; stringing up an arrow, I slowly creeped into the woods, ready for anything.

Walking away from the protective and comforting light of the fire, I saw a figure shrouded in white. Whoever the person might have been was heading away from the direction of the camp, leading me further into the trees. I hesitated as the figure lead me further from the camp, because let's face it, following someone who may or may not be a threat into a dark forest alone is not only stupid but possibly dangerous as well.

"Kagome, follow me. I have something important to show you," the lyrical voice floated back to me; against my better judgment, I found myself following the specter into the forest. For some strange reason I wanted to please the owner of that beautiful, hypnotic voice. So even as my inner sense of logic rebelled against my actions, I stupidly followed, stumbling over roots the entire time. I really hoped this person would lead me back to the camp later, because if he didn't, I know I would be lost.

After another five minutes of walking, the figure stopped in a large clearing very similar to the one that my group made camp in. I waited for the figure to turn and look at me, but it never did. The form just stood there with its back to me, leaving me standing at the edge of the clearing, not really knowing what to do next.

"Who are you, and what do you want with me?" I asked after a few moments of uneasy silence. The response I receive was the sinister laughter I knew all too well. As an overwhelming sense of dread settled heavily in my stomach, I knew the face behind the façade.

"Naraku," I spit venomously. I had been so stupid! I should have known the figure was Naraku as soon as he called my name. All of this was a trap and falling into the damn thing had been my own fault. I would be dead before the night was over—that cold certainty washed over me. There was no way I could take Naraku down on my own, but even though I knew I knew the cold, hard truth, I aimed my bow at Naraku so I could be ready for anything he would throw me. If he wanted to take me down, I was going to go out with a bang.

"That's right, Kagome! A young, defenseless girl such as you shouldn't bestow her trust to others so easily; that would certainly lead to some bad situations. You fell right into my trap, just as I knew you would. Now you are powerless to do anything as I consume you and take your power! With all of your power coursing through me, your friends will be next. Without their little miko there will be no one to stop me from doing completing the jewel. No one. I will absorb them and no one will ever be able to defeat me! All of the power will be mine! Kukuku!"

This little speech was what turned my speculations into facts. Naraku was nuts—entirely bonkers. Being that certifiably insane, I don't think any straightjacket or prolonged stay in a padded cell would do him any good. What's worse is the fact that he didn't want to be cured—I could see this from the glee in his eyes.

"That's where you're wrong, Naraku. I'm not entirely powerless! I'm strong enough to defeat your crazy butt!" I said with a confidence I didn't truly feel. I knew I wouldn't win, but still I released my arrow and let it fly straight towards his heart. I hoped the projectile would hit its mark and put the poor lunatic out of his misery.

I watched as my arrow made a perfect, straight path toward Naraku and then stopped, falling to the ground at his feet. How completely useless. I notched another arrow, and this time as I released the string of the bow, the arrow fell to the ground at my own feet. I did this twice more, all with the same result, and that's when I started to panic. My arrows were useless which meant I was useless.

"That's what you are most afraid of, isn't it, Kagome? Your biggest fear is being useless; after all, if you are useless we both know that InuYasha won't stay around to protect you. He will leave you for Kikyo without a single doubt. If you no longer have a purpose, then InuYasha no longer needs you. Who wants the copy when he can have the real thing?" Naraku chuckled.

I knew he wanted me to break down and cry. That's the point of his mind games. He wanted to see he was having a negative effect on me. Instead, I just looked at him and pushed down the fear and hurt, letting anger and disgust at the monster in front of me take their place. Naraku saw the change, but my reaction lacked the sorrow he wanted to see. With satisfaction I noted the rage boiling under the surface of his smug façade.

"Naraku, darling. You don't know the slightest thing about me or my fears," I said in a patronizing tone. "You have no idea what you are talking about, and I pity you for that."

"You should have just cried, little miko. That would probably have made this entire ordeal easier—well, for you that is. Now I'm angry and that's not good for you or your health." Naraku took a step forward, and I took several back in response. Unfortunately, he didn't miss this little fact. "Kagome, I'm offended!" he mocked. "I wasn't going to hurt you… much. Kukuku." Then abruptly, Naraku started running at me.

"Stay away from me or you're going to be sorry! I swear that if you try to take me down, I won't go down without a fight! I'm going to try harder to take you down!" I screamed as I picked up one of my discarded arrows and notched it in my bow.

"What do you plan on doing with that useless thing? We both remember what happened last time you tried to sing that tune," he clucked as he wagged his finger at me.

"You know what? You're right," I said as I threw my bow to the side. I took the arrow into my hand, fully prepared to use it as a weapon.

"How adorable! You actually think that you have a chance to fight me!" he clapped with glee. "Too bad you're going to die instead," he screamed, once again charging at me.

I feigned panic and waited until he was upon me. Using my arrow, I stabbed him repeatedly. Blood seemed to fly everywhere—on my clothes, into my hair, and onto my face—but I didn't care. I stabbed him until he let out an animalistic yell and grabbed my quiver before flinging it away from me. He wrestled my arrow out of my hand, throwing that too to the side, before backing up and taking inventory of his wounds.

"You little bitch," he growled. His hands shot out and grabbed my wrists, pushing me to the ground and towering over me. I gave a battle cry as I tried to kick him away from me. With satisfaction, I managed to land several hard kicks to his gut before he grabbed my legs and pulled me closer to him. I turned to my side and tried desperately to get away when I saw my arrows lying on the ground not even a foot away from my head.

With almost slow motion like quality, I drew back my leg and kicked him in the face. His face snapped to the side and blood flowed freely out of his nose and down his chin. Looking at him, I smiled evilly, knowing the crunch I heard was his nose breaking. Before he could retaliate, I rolled over and grabbed my arrows.

"What are you planning to do with those? You're useless, remember?" He tried to attack me again, so I took my arrow and smacked him across the face. I only managed to piss him off and leave an angry red scratch across his left cheek, but I would take what I could get. He grabbed at me again, but this time sudden inspiration struck me. This time when I hit him, I charged my arrow until it spewed pink light. Hitting him with the pure arrow did more damage, but it also made him more desperate.

"You little brat!" he screamed, taking my arrows from my hand as he ignored the purification coming from them. My hope died as he snapped the arrows in half and threw them to the side like pathetic twigs.

"No, get away from me!" I screamed as he walked towards me. "Help! InuYasha! Help! Anyone help me! Sesshomaru!" I screamed at the top of my lungs in a desperate attempt at saving my life.

"Nobody will come for you. Why do you think you got away from camp so easily? They all knew about the entire plan; they don't care what happens to you now. You are nothing to them. Now sit still so that I can absorb you!"

He pulled me to him and I fought him every inch of the way. "You don't know anything, Naraku! My friends will know that you did this to me, and they will find you and kill you."

"I don't think so. You are mine, little miko," he said. He grabbed my wrists harshly and pulled me to him. As his body started to melt around me, I knew he had me. He absorbed me into his body until all that I saw was pure black. I let out a long scream, feeling the blackness suffocating me.

I felt someone shaking me and tore the blanket from my face. Cool air and firelight greeted me, and I almost died from happiness. Looking around I saw all the worried faces of my friends staring down at me. I'd never felt so safe in my life.

"Kagome, are you okay? It seemed that you were having an awful nightmare," informed Sango, sympathy lacing her worried voice.

"What are you talking about?" I asked. I felt disoriented and all I could remember from my dream was complete darkness.

"Well, you were rolling around and crying. Before long, you started muttering "Naraku" and that's when we started worrying about you. You actually screamed before you woke up. I'm guessing your scream is actually what woke you up," Miroku told me.

Miroku's words broke the hazy fog clouding my brain, and suddenly, my dream came flooding back to me—the figure, Naraku, his words, and the fight. Every horrific detail became suddenly clear in my mind.

"Miss Kagome! You're turning green like Jaken! Do you feel okay?" asked Rin in a worried voice.

"I feel like I'm going to be sick!" I announced as I launched myself out from the cover of my sleeping bag. I ran into the woods where I promptly vomited everything I had eaten earlier behind a tree. When I felt someone's warm, gentle hand pulling my hair back out of my face, I nearly jumped out of my skin, but quickly recovered when I realized I wasn't in the realm of dreams anymore. I wanted to thank whoever held my hair, but I couldn't stop puking.

When my stomach seemed to be completely empty, I finally turned to thank whoever was kind enough to watch that horrific spectacle and hold my hair. To my surprise, I saw that Sesshomaru was the person who sat behind me.

"Feel better, miko?" he asked me, raising a condescending eyebrow. Really, I was too shocked to answer with some witty comeback, so I just nodded.

"Rin has nightmares as well. This is simply instinct," he said by way of an explanation.

"Oh, well… thanks. I know that it has to be hard on your nose."

He just "Hn"ed me and walked back to the camp, leaving me to follow. I went back to the comfort of my sleeping bag and settled in under its familiar weight and warmth. Save for Sesshomaru, everyone was giving me weird looks, but I had to ignore them. I needed a moment to process what happened in the dream and all that I felt. However, I couldn't ignore when InuYasha came over and started sniffing at me.

"What are you doing?" I asked, slightly aggravated.

"Kagome, you smell weird," InuYasha informed me. From the tone of his voice and the look on his face, he didn't seem the slightest bit sorry to be telling me this.

"Why thanks! That's a great way to build my confidence! I wonder why I could smell so weird. Maybe it's this new perfume I'm trying out—it's called 'I just puked my guts up in the forest.' Do you like?" I bit back sarcastically.

"No! That's not what I meant…. Kagome, you smell like you just came back from a meeting with Naraku. His scent is all over you."

Shocked by this information, I looked down at my wrists. What I saw there gave me an even worse shock. On each wrist a think band of bruises was just starting to form. They all resembled fingerprints in the spots where Naraku grabbed me in the dream. I looked up to where I left my bow before I went to bed, and my eyes only found the empty spot where the weapon should have been. Unable to take the realization now coursing through my mind, I ran back into the cover of the trees to dry heave some more.

After I felt certain my stomach had stopped churning for the moment, and I had my emotions under control, I sat back on my heels. There was no point in denying the truth. Somehow, Naraku discovered a way to link himself to me, and now he could enter my dreams. These dreams were somehow linked to reality—the bruises and missing weapon was proof enough that the dream changed something over here. No matter what I did, I would never feel safe again. No matter where I went, he could find me, and that wasn't what scared me the most. What scared me stemmed from the fact that next time, he might actually find a way to kill me. My stomach started churning once more.

When I was confident I wouldn't puke again, I returned to my sleeping bag. I looked up at each one of my friends and I knew that every one of them had questions; that much was plain on their faces.

InuYasha came over to me and took my hands, examining the bruises forming on my wrists. He tenderly stroked them, trying to ease some of my pain.

"Kagome, do you have any idea why you smell like Naraku?" he asked quietly.

"I had a dream about Naraku, and in the dream he led me into the woods." I went on and explained everything—the voice, the fighting, and even what he said and how it made me feel. InuYasha seemed shocked to say the least as I retold what Naraku said to me. When I told them all how I responded, his face took on a disturbed look. As stunned as everyone seemed, no one batted an eyelash when I burst into tears and buried my face in InuYasha's chest.

"Everything felt so real—I really thought I was going to die all alone. I didn't know what would happen to me or what would happen to all of you, and that really scared me."

"Kagome, you're an idiot," InuYasha admonished quietly. "I would never let Naraku hurt you. I would never let him hurt any of my friends."

_You would never let Naraku hurt me, but what about Kikyo? _I thought to myself. As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I felt guilty. I buried my face farther into his side and sobbed. He brought his arms up and hugged me tightly.

"I couldn't tell that I was dreaming or that I was asleep. It just felt so real. The worst part is that I woke up with these bruises where Naraku grabbed me. To top it off, I lost my bow and arrows in the dream, and they are missing here. I don't know how or why, but somehow Naraku is breaching reality through my dreams."

A growl erupted form InuYasha, vibrating his chest under my face. Quickly, I realized he wasn't the only one growling—Shippou and Kirara were growling too. I heard Miroku and Sango muttering angrily to themselves, and deep lines of worry etched themselves onto Rin's forehead. Even Sesshomaru looked slightly peeved as he stared into the darkness with narrowed eyes. Nobody liked the thought of Naraku being able to reach me through my dreams.

As if out of thin air, Sesshomaru appeared by my side. He gently grabbed my wrist and examined the thick band of bruises still forming. I watched with horror as he slowly brought my wrist to his nose and sniffed.

"Naraku's scent still lingers on the miko," he growled. "If he reached her through her dreams once, he will likely attempt to do so again."

"I bet that Naraku was counting on Kagome not saying anything so she wouldn't worry us,' Miroku added after a moment of thought. "It seems like something you would do," he gave me an apologetic smile. I just shrugged because this was something I would do.

I watched as the two brothers on either side of me processed all this information. They both looked to each other, and for a moment, I swore they were silently communicating with each other. When they agreed on something, I knew because InuYasha nodded.

"Kagome, you're not gonna like this, but Sesshomaru and I agree that one of us has to sleep next to you and wake you up if we smell Naraku. It won't hurt to wake you up the moment you look like you're gonna have a nightmare."

I blinked and looked between the two brothers. I heard what InuYasha had said, but I couldn't believe my ears.

"Wait just one minute," I started. InuYasha's ears flattened to his skull and Sesshomaru actually back away from me. "Did you just say the two of you agreed on something?"

Everyone in the camp erupted into loud laughter, and even Sesshomaru couldn't hide his little half-smirk.

* * *

><p>AN: Hello my pretties! Life has been crazy, and oddly enough I've used this to fuel my writing! I really hope that all of you like this chapter! I worked hard on it and I actually took the time to edit once I had finished writing! (What?!) I hope to have another chapter of Taming the Monster out soon, and of course The After will be updated on Monday! I love you all, and thanks for your support! Also, go check out Weregirl96. She's fairly new to the fandom, so let's give her a warm welcome!

I'm a starving writer. Leave a review and give me something to eat!


	7. The Changing of the Tides

An Unlikely Mating  
>The Changing of the Tides<p>

Getting Rin and Shippou to go to bed was a struggle; I had to keep convincing them that I was fine—that nothing was going to happen to me while InuYasha and Sesshomaru watched over me. After a lot of convincing, I finally managed to get them laid down and relaxed. Minutes after that, they were both sleeping soundly despite their earlier protests of not being tired.

I sat and admired their faces for a while, marveling at the children and their ability to fall asleep so quickly. They both looked to be having good dreams. Peaceful smiles stretched across their faces and they breathed easily. Before standing, I leaned down to give each of them a gentle kiss on the forehead and a whispered "goodnight."

I looked to InuYasha, who sat across the fire and refused to look anywhere near me. I probably imagined this next part, but I swear I saw a faint pink tinging his cheeks. If he was blushing I couldn't really blame him; at the thought of how close we were going to be, I could feel my own cheeks pooling with heat.

Gathering up my courage, I took a deep breath and walked over to InuYasha. I didn't have any delicate way of phrasing this, so I just dove into that awkwardness. Knowing that he couldn't really say no only made the situation a tiny bit better.

"How do you want to do this?" I asked quietly and shyly. I looked at my feet, not at InuYasha, so I couldn't see his reaction to my blazing red cheeks. This was already mortifying enough without him smirking or something stupid.

"You're the one that's gonna be sleeping," he replied gruffly, but somehow still managing to leave the usual harshness out of his voice.

"We could go up into a tree if that makes you more comfortable?" I suggested. I meant to sound sure but ended sounding as if I were questioning him. I knew InuYasha preferred trees at night, as if he were a cat demon instead of a dog demon, and I didn't really care where I slept. As long as Naraku didn't plague my dreams, I was fine with pretty much anything.

"Keh," he responded as he stood and looped his arm around my waist. "Going up," he announced before springing into the air and then landing gracefully on a lower branch of the tree.

He set me on the branch beside him, and I started to settle down for the night. I stopped when I noticed he was looking at me somewhat expectantly.

"What?" I questioned.

"Kagome, you're gonna have to sleep on my lap if we do this in a tree," he elaborated. I just stared at him in a blank sort of shock. I watched as he turned so that his body was lengthwise on the branch and his back rested against the trunk of the tree.

"Oh yea," I responded dumbly after a moment.

InuYasha opened his arms, welcoming me into the warm circle they made. Slowly, I crawled over to him and awkwardly maneuvered myself onto his lap. After a moment of careful adjusting, InuYasha relaxed his back fully against the bark of the tree and then wrapped his strong arms around me. I know I wasn't going to be falling out of the tree tonight.

The way we sat had me intimately pressed up against InuYasha, and I couldn't contain my nervousness. Through our clothes, I felt the hard muscles of his chest pressed against my back. As much as I tried, I couldn't deny that I was a girl with needs, and I once harbored feelings for this very person. My head rested on his chest, just by his left shoulder, and I could hear the quick beating of his heart. His strong arms circled my waist, and his hands rested under mine in my lap. We were practically spooning in a seated position—something my overactive imagination wouldn't let me forget.

"Relax, Kagome. It's just me," InuYasha chuckled into my ear. Apparently, my nervous shifting wasn't good for the relaxing. "I'm not going to let you fall," he said after my shifting didn't stop.

"I know that," I sighed and relaxed fully. My nervousness seemed ridiculous. InuYasha was one of my best friends after all; he wouldn't do anything to make me uncomfortable.

"Are you comfy enough?" he asked after a few moments, proving my very thoughts. He shifted a bit and repositioned me on his lap in an attempt to make me more comfortable.

"Are you?" I questioned. "I'm not the one that has to lean against a tree all night— I have a comfy pillow," I said as I gave a little wiggle to prove my point.

"I'm great," he chuckled. "Now stop doing that and get to sleep before you make both of us fall out of this tree."

"Yes sir!" I saluted. "Good night, InuYasha." Having said my goodnight, I settled in for some sleep.

"Good night, Kagome," I heard InuYasha mutter quietly as sleep claimed me with a drowsy finality. Within moments I was warm and comfortably drifting along the tides of sleep.

The next morning I woke up feeling warm and extremely light. I couldn't remember a night in the feudal era where I slept more soundly.

As I leaned forward and stretched, my surroundings came flooding back to me. I froze mid-stretch and opened my eyes as I realized where I was. Turning my head, I looked straight into the golden eyes of InuYasha. A smirk adorned his face, and I realized my extremely suggestive pose.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine," he said in an unusually cocky voice.

"Good morning, InuYasha," I muttered in return as I quickly arranged myself in a more innocent position. I didn't need anyone on the ground, especially Miroku, getting the wrong idea.

"What'd you dream about?" he asked suddenly, giving me a peculiar look.

"You want to know what I dreamt about?" I repeated dumbly. Why did InuYasha want to know—why did he even care? Horror dawned as I wondered if I said anything embarrassing in my sleep.

"Yea, that's what I asked." The look he then gave me seemed to question my mental facilities.

To appease him, I sifted through my mind and tried to remember the contents of last night's dreams. For a fleeting moment I remembered, but then the dream slipped out of my grasp. I had no idea what I dreamt about; I just knew that the dream was pleasant.

"I don't remember," I finally answered. "Why do you want to know?"

"It was just weird. You kept saying Sesshomaru, Shippou, and Rin. You were just freaking me out," he shrugged.

"Are you two coming down here or not?" Sango called from the base of the tree InuYasha and I still claimed. In our little world of branches, I had almost forgotten that everyone else was down there.

"We're coming! Don't get your panties in a bunch!" InuYasha yelled back, adopting a phrase he heard in my time. "Let's get going before someone starts shrieking." He grabbed me and jumped from the branch before landing softly and setting me on my feet.

"What were you two doing up there?" Miroku asked with a lecherous smile. "Should we have allowed you more time to finish up?" he asked with a wink. This smirk quickly wiped itself off his face as Sango slapped him and the usual screams of "hentai!" rang out across the camp.

Routine took over and soon we were packing up the camp. As we were heading out, I caught Sesshomaru's eye from across the camp. As our eyes locked together, the gaze seemed impossible to break. What started out as a split second look up turned into a stare that caused a warm feeling to wash over me. The butterflies that had rested peacefully in my stomach decided to take up flight at that moment—but not before they set themselves on fire. My stomach felt warm and fluttery, and I could hear the loud sound of my heart thundering in my chest. A blush came to my cheeks from the intensity of the feeling, and I could tell something similar was happening to Sesshomaru. I saw a recognition dawn in his eyes—as if he actually saw me for the first time, and that he liked what he saw.

As he looked at me, I couldn't help but feel that this had something to do with the dream I couldn't remember.

"Are you coming or not?" InuYasha snapped, thankfully wrenching us both out of that stare.

Looking away from Sesshomaru, my previous thoughts seemed ludicrous. There was no way that anything had just happened with the icicle. We didn't share a moment, and he wasn't looking at me. The only reason I felt anything is because I felt off from the nightmare with Naraku. That had to be the only explanation.

"Yea, I'm coming!" I finally replied as I followed InuYasha. As I walked past the spot where Sesshomaru stood, I saw that he was still looking at me, something akin to curiosity burning in his eyes.

"After you, miko," he indicated with a hand when I stopped and gave him a questioning look. I walked past him and he fell in step behind me. I didn't say anything to him, because I was too busy getting my erratically beating heart under control.

* * *

><p>A week passed and my strange feeling about Sesshomaru faded until I could almost believe that I imagined the whole staring weirdness in the first place. He reverted to his normal self, which meant he resumed his habitual practice of ignoring me and everyone else in the group, save for Rin and Shippou. The only reason I clung to the encounter was because every morning brought the same experience before we would move on and nothing more happened.<p>

As the week progressed I continued to sleep on InuYasha's lap in various trees along the countryside. Just as we guessed, InuYasha's careful watch kept my nightmares away, and I was able to sleep easily and comfortably. I felt safer than ever, and everything would have been great if not for the fact that InuYasha wasn't getting any sleep himself.

As each day passed, InuYasha became more and more irritable. I could see the dark shadows under his eyes, and the fact he seemed so tired worried me to no end. After the seventh night of him keeping watch over me, I asked if he wanted to let Sesshomaru take over for a night. This ended up in a small argument that left everyone fairly irritated, and we still hadn't devised a solution. I decided to allow InuYasha to keep his pride and just sleep under his guard. Eventually, he would get so tired that he would volunteer to let Sesshomaru have one bloody night.

That morning, after the dust settled from our little dispute, found us traveling down a worn dirt path. I felt a tingling in the back of my mind, and after a few more minutes I knew for sure that a jewel shard was traveling in our general direction. From what I could sense, the demon carrying the jewel was a low level and would be easy to defeat.

"InuYasha, I sense a demon with a jewel shard heading our way." The rest of the little group stopped walking to wait and see what our hanyou friend chose to do.

"Is it Naraku?" he asked as he pulled out his sword and prepared himself for battle.

"No, just a lesser demon likely drawn by my chunk of the jewel," I answered before leaving to stand with Sango. "You will be able to handle this with no problem!"

As I predicted, a small demon revealed itself to us only moments later. The pathetically furry thing claimed to be here to steal the jewel fragment from us to become more powerful. I watched as the two went at each other with swords, and as I watched InuYasha, I started to worry about my friend.

Although InuYasha was clearly much faster than the demon, he was still moving slowly. His movements seemed lengthy and sluggish, as if he were walking through molasses. He fought quiet and withdrawn—a complete 180 from his routine hubris.

The fight didn't last long, and InuYasha vanquished the demon with no complications, but that didn't stop the worry from bubbling up in my stomach. Watching me at night was wearing on InuYasha and affecting his ability to fight. I could never live with myself if he got himself hurt because of his arrogant pride and refusal to let his brother take over for one measly night.

The fight ended and we continued on our trek. As we exchanged worried looks, I know that Sango and Miroku noticed the change in InuYasha as well. I brainstormed ways to bring up the subject as painlessly as possible, but each attempt fell short. With InuYasha there just was no delicate way to breach the subject. Miroku and I exchanged a meaningful look before I finally worked up the nerve to open my mouth and let the words tumble.

"InuYasha? Can we stop for a while and rest? I know that we all could use the break."

He turned and sent a deadly glare my way. I felt chilled to the bone at the force of his annoyance. "No, we're not stopping," he declared as he turned and kept walking. I couldn't find the words to argue, so we walked on a while longer.

A few hours later InuYasha continued to march in front of us. I still hadn't confronted InuYasha, and I knew that I'd have to do so soon. I was so lost in my conflicted thoughts that I didn't notice Rin until she was pulling on my skirt.

"Miss Kagome, Rin is starting to get hungry," the adorable little girl admitted to me in a whisper. Shippou came bounding up to me and added, "Me too, Kagome!"

"Well, I guess that we need to stop for lunch! I can't have my kids being hungry!" I said brightly. This was killing two birds with one stone! We could stop for lunch, and the group, InuYasha included, had the chance to get some much needed rest.

I ushered everyone to the side of the path and started unpacking the supplies I needed for lunch. I was the only one that didn't notice that InuYasha was still walking, not noticing that everyone was stopping.

"Half-breed," Sesshomaru called to him, the sound of his voice pulling me out of my gleeful sandwich making frenzy. I looked up to see InuYasha turn around, a murderous look residing on his face.

"Why the hell are we stopping again?" he screamed as he bounded back to us. He stomped his way to where I sat on the ground, spreading peanut butter on bread. "Explain this!"

"InuYasha, calm down. It's not a big deal; I just decided that we should stop for lunch. A number of us are hungry, and we could all use the break from walking. We have to be prepared and on our feet, not dead with exhaustion and hunger, if someone decides to attack us," I elaborated, hoping that this small argument would sway him in my favor. "Don't turn this into a big deal," I warned when I saw that he wasn't calming down at all. Apparently, he was too dense to understand my warning.

He crouched down so that he was right in my face.

"We are never going to find any shards if we keep stopping every hour and a half to rest! How the hell am I supposed to defeat Naraku if you always want to sit on your ass?" he screeched in my face.

I took a deep breath and counted backwards from ten in my head. Screaming probably wouldn't help in my situation. "I'm sorry you feel that way, but you're not the only one in this group that wants to defeat Naraku. You are not the only one with something at stake here, and we can't do anything if half of us are dead on our feet, and that includes you. I know that you're tired but—" I started.

"Shut up! I am not tired! I can't help that I get pissed off cuz the so called 'alpha' of our pack is some lazy bitch that never does anything to contribute except sit on her growing rear! You suck at being a pack mate, and you suck a being an alpha! You're the lazy bitch that's gonna end up getting us killed when I have to save your ass in battle! Kikyo would be a better alpha, mother, miko, or whatever than you could ever hope to be!" he screamed in my face.

Everything seemed silent for a moment as I realized that everyone else had stopped what they'd been doing to watch what would happen next. I felt like the air surrounding me had stilled in anticipation of how I would react.

I felt a thick, red rage rolling through my body, and I knew this was something that I needed to deal with now. I threw the butter knife I'd been using down to the ground in front us me and then stood so I towered over a terrified looking InuYasha. My entire body vibrated with tension, and my hands clenched in tight fists at my sides. I wanted to punch him out more than I had ever wanted to punch anyone in my life; I was livid. InuYasha really crossed the line this time, and I refused to let him get away with this sort of behavior any longer.

"InuYasha, I need to speak with you for a moment. In private," I gritted out between clenched teeth before I turned and started walking back down the road. When I finally stopped I could still see the others, but no one except Sesshomaru would be capable of hearing us. For some reason, I had the feeling that Sesshomaru wasn't into gossiping.

"Ugh!" I screamed to the sky as I finally let out my pent up rage. InuYasha's ears flatted to his skull, and I knew he was starting to regret his past decisions. "You stupid. Freaking. Jerk!" I shrieked. "I cannot believe that you seriously said that to me in front of everyone! It's awful enough when you call me a lazy bitch when we're alone, but in front of my son and all of my friends? I can't believe you!"

"Kago-"

"Nope, I'm not done talking yet! You don't have the right to freak out when the group wants to take a break. I'm so sorry that we measly humans need to stop for food and rest! Maybe you need to stop for a moment and consider the fact that half of our group consists of humans and children. I know that it's my fault you are so damn cranky, but that doesn't mean you get to act like a complete ass about it!

"Also, you need to shut the heck up about my skills as an alpha! I might not be a demon, but I am a miko! Don't you dare think that I won't zap some freaking manners into you! I may not be one hundred percent sure about my skills as a leader, but I'm doing the best job that I can. So far, you're the only one with any complaints, so I'm betting that I'm not butchering this too much.

"And that brings up another thing: stop comparing me to Kikyo! I'm not her and I never will be, so I'm done with the stupid competition. I don't care if I am her reincarnation or what the hell ever! That doesn't mean that I am the same person. She doesn't even accept you for who you are, so stop telling me that I need to act like her. You want me to be a closed-minded bigot, and I just won't do that!

"If you think your beloved Kikyo would do a better job at being your alpha and pack mate, then by all means, leave! You can take anyone that agrees with you, but good luck trying to convince them! If you want to be with Kikyo so bad that you take your frustrations out on me because I look like her, then just leave. Nothing is keeping you here, and I certainly won't stop you if you really want to leave. I'm warning you now; if you leave for good and don't like what you end up getting, don't come crawling back to me begging for forgiveness. I'm done. I can't put up with this any longer," I finished, feeling utterly defeated.

I stood there and tried to catch my breath. InuYasha looked stricken as he stepped forward, probably trying to come to me. I shook my head, putting my hand up and shielding myself from him. When he took another step toward me, I backed away from him.

"Don't try to make me forgive you right now, because that is not going to happen this time. If you didn't mean what you said on some level, you wouldn't have said such hurtful things in the first place. All I know is that your words hurt me too much to let you keep doing this. This cycle needs to stop now."

"Kagome, I had no idea that I made you feel this way. I never meant…"

I laughed without humor. The sound seemed so sad and desolate that InuYasha flinched away from me as if I had hit him.

"You honestly can't expect me to believe that after all this time, InuYasha. I loved you for two years, and don't say that you didn't know. Everyone knew. Hell, even Kikyo knew. I loved you, but you keep hurting me, and I don't know if I can continue loving you—I don't know if I even should. You keep comparing me to Kikyo, and I see that you want me to be her. I just cannot do that. I refuse to. There's no room in your heart for me when she is still there. Even if someday there was, I don't know if I could love you as more than a friend after everything you've put me through."

"Kagome, I made her a promise," he groaned. He sounded hurt, and normally that would make me come crawling back, but not today. Not with the hurt coursing through my system.

"And I made you a promise; I promised to stay by your side, but I don't know if I can keep doing that." As I released the words, hurt boiled over in the salty form of tears. "I don't know what to do anymore, and I'm sorry for that, InuYasha."

"Kagome, I'm so sorry. I wish I knew how to take everything back."

"That's the thing InuYasha, you can't take this back. Do you know much loving someone hurts—especially when he doesn't love you back? I tortured myself to be with you, and if I keep doing this I'll end up hating you. I don't want to hate you. The only way I can ever be your friend again is for me to stop loving you. I just need some time and then things can go back to how they used to be. I just need the time to get over you."

InuYasha said something then, but I didn't hear him. I was already walking back to the comfort of my friends. They all gave me worried looks as I returned, and I gave them a watery smile.

"Who's ready to eat?" I asked as I started passing out sandwiches someone finished in my absence. Wordlessly my friends took their food and withdrew to eat in silence. No one asked if InuYasha was coming back, and from the way they refused to look me in the eyes, I knew Sesshomaru filled them in on something. Traitor.

A few minutes after we finished eating and packed up camp, InuYasha joined us and my somber group resumed our march down the worn path.

"Kagome, are you okay?" Sango asked after we had traveled for a bit.

"Sango, for the first time in a long time, I'm not actually sure," I replied as I continued down the road.

* * *

><p>AN: Yay! I updated! This chapter took forever for me to write, and I apologize for that! I hope to get back into the swing of things!

Big thanks to my wifey, Weregirl96 for looking this over for me! You all should definitely go check her out!

Leave me a review and let me know what you think!


	8. True Value

An Unlikely Mating  
>Chapter 8: True Value<p>

Hanging in the back and keeping my mouth closed seemed like the best course of action with tensions running high, so that's exactly what I did. Even if I tried to vocalize all the thoughts buzzing around my head, I knew that the floodgates would break and pour open, and that I'd say something I would really regret. So Instead I chose to hide at the back of the group and quietly deal with all the anger, hurt, and confusion I felt.

As my friends trudged in front of me, a certain detail captured my attention and then bugged me to no end. Everyone in the group was keeping completely silent, and if I had to watch my friends act like docile housewives for one more moment, I would lose my mind. Just because I felt miserable didn't mean all my friends needed to suffer. The kids should have been laughing and playing, not marching quietly and worrying about me. With all the heaviness Naraku brought, I figured they did enough worrying without adding my sorry butt into the mix.

I glanced around, looking for something to lighten the mood. I didn't want to make my purpose blatantly obvious; the kids would just worry more if I seemed desperate. As I gazed at the long grasses growing along the side of the path hoping for an idea, inspiration struck. Picking a piece, I sent my plan into motion and snuck up behind Shippou.

He gave me a funny look at suddenly coming so close, but the moment he turned his attention away from me, I used the piece of grass to tickle his neck. His eyes snapped back to me, but I was the picture of innocence with the piece of grass already hidden behind me. I pulled this on him three times before he finally caught me.

After my ruse was up, I gave him a sly smile and passed him the piece of grass. I gestured to Rin, and with a determined nod, he set off to antagonize his unsuspecting victim.

In no time at all, the children were laughing and playing games once more. Because the kids started acting normal, the tension seemed to dissolve, and as we traveled, the group became a little lighter than before. With the attention off me, I was now free to hide at the back of the group and sulk without my friends constantly worrying about me.

"Clever ploy, miko," Sesshomaru said as he came up next to me. Because my mood was so funky, I had almost forgotten he was back here with me. Almost.

"I didn't do anything bad or try to harm them. Don't make me sound like some sort of sneak," I grumbled and crossed my arms.

"Was that not the point?" he said with a condescending eyebrow raise. "You tricked the rest of the group to forget their worry for you."

"Hey!" I interjected. "Tricking my friends was never my goal! I just couldn't handle the kids looking so miserable. As a mother the heavy stuff is my cross to bear, and mine alone. I try to shield Shippou from the horrors I can—a courtesy I intend to extend to Rin. They already have enough on their plates to worry about with Naraku and this stupid jewel looming over all our heads. I just want them to act like children whenever they can. If that means 'tricking' them into having fun, then so be it."

"You present me with an enigma. I do not understand how you put the wants and needs of others before your own and remain so… bubbly," Sesshomaru replied after a while.

"You know, I think you put way too much faith in me, Sesshomaru." Wow. I never thought that would be coming out of my mouth.

"I give respect where I see due. You would distract you friends so you may suffer alone rather than allow them feelings of discomfort for your pain."

"I still have my faults. Don't tell me you wouldn't do the same for Rin—I see the way you look at her; I look at Shippou the same way," I noted.

"I cannot deny that I view Rin as more than a retainer, and I allow her liberties I do not extend to others. Shielding your son is sound, and I am grateful you extend the same courtesies to my ward."

We walked in a comfortable silence as I allowed his words to digest. The fact that Sesshomaru cared for Rin so deeply warmed me towards him. Sure, he still seemed frightening with his feral beauty and biting frigidity, but knowing he cared for Rin thawed him a bit and softened the harsh edges. For a fleeting moment, I felt as if the cold demon Sesshomaru allowed us to see was very different from the demon he really was on the inside. Him allowing me to see these two entities blew me away.

Glimpsing into the hidden side of Sesshomaru raised more questions than I cared to admit. How much did he really hate humans? I mean he obviously cared for his human ward. And why did he really keep everyone at a distance—people didn't just become cold for no reason. How could he stand not expressing himself, and why was he allowing me of all people to see this even more complex and confusing side to him. And most importantly: did we just carry on an entire conversation?

"Sesshomaru, don't get me wrong, I'm grateful you decided to talk to me, but why exactly are you actually talking to me? Usually you just stand at the back of the group all typical Prince of the Deadly Smolder like." Yes, I really just called him Prince of the Deadly Smolder.

He shot me a dirty look, but he didn't shove his hand through my guts, so I figured I'd live for the time being.

"Miko, even the most solitary creatures crave intellectual conversation. Many people fail to offer worthwhile discussion, so I seldom bother. I find no need to waste my breath on pointless talk."

"You definitely have the wrong girl, then. I never shut up, so meaningless chitchat is kind of my middle name. If you're looking for intelligence, you should hit up Miroku. I'm not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed," I admitted, feeling no shame over my easy admittance.

"You are a worthy conversationalist. You carry a heavy burden, yet you don't buckle under the weight. That makes you a worthy opponent. When you aren't blathering just to hear your own voice, you can be quite intelligent."

"Thanks, I think." Sesshomaru may have just delivered a backhanded compliment, but that was the only praise I would likely earn from him. Seeing as he didn't give praise lightly, I decided to feel flattered.

Neither of us talked for the rest of the evening. For once, I felt unbothered by the silence between us—knowing that he didn't want to rip out my jugular also helped soothe some of my nerves. As we walked, I thought about my troubles, the battles to come, and even what might come after that disaster. Easing back into my friendship with InuYasha would benefit the both of us—really, this decision would do good to the entire group. This gave InuYasha and me the opportunity to move on without jeopardizing the friendships we'd forged along this journey. Even if doing this felt like ripping my heart out now, I knew that this would help everyone in the end. Knowing what I planned to do next allowed me to feel lighter, and I enjoyed the rest of the beautiful evening around me.

By the time I motioned for the group to stop and make a camp, the atmosphere seemed significantly lighter. Sadness over breaking off my first love still weighed heavily on my heart, but the twinge of hope I felt would be more than enough to get me through whatever came next.

I repeated this to myself like a mantra as I prepared dinner. I even kept this thought running on a loop through my head as my friends started getting ready for bed around me. When I was almost done with the dinner mess, I knew my time to procrastinate had run dry. I needed to prepare myself mentally for what could happen after this.

"Ready, Kagome?" InuYasha asked quietly as he seemingly materialized by my side.

I'd been so wrapped up in my thoughts I hadn't noticed him approaching. Instead of seeming angry, as I expected, InuYasha seemed uncharacteristically resigned and polite. Automatically, I threw up my guard and waited for him to snap out of whatever hit him and start screaming at me.

"InuYasha," I started cautiously. "I think maybe it's a good idea for Sesshomaru to take over watch."

InuYasha sat down next to me, looking mildly annoyed but trying to keep the emotion off his face.

"I can do it," he replied stubbornly. However, the usual brazen gruffness was missing from his voice.

"InuYasha, I know that you want to keep your promise to protect me, but I'm letting you off the hook right now. Sesshomaru is plenty capable of keeping me safe. Plus, you still need to get some sleep, and right now I need my distance from you."

"Kagome," he started to groan.

"Just listen to what I'm saying for a minute!" I cried, successfully cutting off his complaints. "I did a lot of thinking today, and I've made a decision that I will stand by even if you test me. I'm not proud we fought, but I feel that this was inevitable—things became too complicated when I fell in love with you. The team worked better when we were just friends. I was happier that way.

"You are my best friend; I never want something stupid like a fight come between us. I'm not mad at anyone—I just need some space to settle my emotions and get my head on straight. I love you, a part of me will always love you, but I'm sick of this cycle. We fight, I cry, then I forgive you because this tiny little voice tells me maybe you'll eventually love me if I give you one more chance. This time has to be different. I have to break out of this cycle if we want to have any chance at beating Naraku and finding happiness."

As my quiet words drifted into the night air, I gazed across the fire at my little group of friends. Seeing them chattering and laughing sent me back to the time before I loved InuYasha—the time before my conflicting emotions came into play, and InuYasha and I felt free to joke and bicker without worrying about bruised feelings. More than anything, I longed to return to that point in time, and because of this intense feeling of longing, I knew I could never be more than friends with the man a little part of me would always love.

"This won't be easy for me," my voice broke our little bubble of silence, "but I will stick to my decision. Please don't treat me any different from the rest of the group—any special treatment will just make this harder on me. I know you regret what happened, but let's not dwell on that. Can we make this a new beginning?"

All through my speech, I gazed at the flickering fire, but as the last sentence tumbled from my mouth, I looked up at InuYasha.

"'Gome, I just want you to be happy. If you need space or whatever, I'll give ya your space. I am sorry. I want us to be friends again," he admitted with a soft smile.

I beamed with relief as he started to push himself up from his spot next to me.

"Oi, wench," he said as he turned back to me. "You know I'll always love ya too, right?" I couldn't help but smile when his ears twitched as he listened for my response.

"I know," I breathed with a soft smile. Nodding, he turned back and walked to the rest of the group.

"Hey! Can it, people! I need to get some rest!" he announced before jumping to a low branch in a tree and settling in for sleep.

My friends looked from InuYasha to me, relieved smiles adorning their faces. I knew this would take time, but soon everything would return to normal. My little family would survive—we always did.

I tucked the kids into their sleeping bag and gathered mine into my arms. Having already brushed my teeth and changed into flannels, all that remained was for me to actually settle down and sleep. Unfortunately, the sleeping is what had my stomach churning with anxiety.

"Sesshomaru," I ventured as I toed my way over to him. "Do you mind taking watch for a bit? Over me, I mean. I guess you could watch over everything at the same time, but-."

"Miko," he snapped, cutting off my nervous babbling. Despite our conversation earlier, I couldn't help but feel nervous. Even if Sesshomaru didn't think I wasn't completely incompetent didn't mean he wanted to get all cuddly with me.

"Sorry," I mumbled. In response he simply gestured to the space next to him, indicating I should sleep there. There, barely a foot away from him.

I swallowed and rigidly shuffled over with my sleeping bag. As I bent down to spread out the darned thing, I felt Sesshomaru's eyes following my every motion. My stiff, awkward movements were counterproductive to my task, so with a sigh I gave up and crawled into my sleeping bag.

"Is not the point of this for you to sleep?" Sesshomaru inquired after a few moments. My constant shifting and sighing must have gotten on his nerves.

"Sorry, Sesshomaru. I'm having trouble falling asleep. I'm just too nervous," I admitted as I rolled over to look at him.

"I fail to see the reason for your nerves."

"Well, I guess the idea of you keeping watch sets me on edge," I whispered after a moment.

He answered with a menacing growl, and I couldn't help but jump at the threatening noise.

"You doubt my capabilities," he accused. The anger and annoyance in his voice threw me for a moment, but then confusion cleared and horror took its place.

"I'm not nervous because I think you are inadequate to keep me safe! We both know you are more than capable! I'm nervous because you're not exactly cuddly and I feel like a burden to you."

"Hn."

"I'll just shut up and go to sleep now," I mumbled, once again turning away from him.

I heard a low chuckle rumble in his chest, and the sound had a soothing effect. Sesshomaru was more than capable of watching over me, and this was only awkward because I felt so awkward. Knowing I was safe and that Sesshomaru probably wouldn't gut me for rolling too close, I allowed myself to drift off to sleep.

PAGE BREAK

Days passed, bled into weeks, and soon enough Sesshomaru had traveled with the group for a month. Out of this month, three weeks I slept under guard to make sure Naraku didn't enter my dreams. Two of these weeks I spent under Sesshomaru's guard.

What seemed awkward became normal. Slowly, I grew used to Sesshomaru and his quiet collectiveness. Before I thought of him as icy, cold, and proud, but watching him allowed me to see he was these things, but he also had many redeeming qualities. He watched and observed like a hawk. Nothing slipped past his notice. He seemed to take everything into his mind and catalogue whatever he noticed. Sesshomaru knew each person in the group, even if he kept this knowledge to himself.

What surprised me the most was the fact that Sesshomaru was sweet, and he seemed to really love children. I mean, why else would he travel with Rin if he didn't like children. However, I doubt anyone else in the group saw this side to Sesshomaru—no, I knew no one else suspected Sesshomaru to have a secret sweet side. Still, I saw everything. The rest of the group largely ignored Sesshomaru, but I took to hanging out with him in the back. Because of this, I noticed happenings no one would believe if I chose to voice them.

Sometimes Sesshomaru randomly disappeared. One moment we'd be walking side by side, and the next I walked alone. Eventually he would reappear and we'd keep walking as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. After his disappearances I'd notice Rin and Shippou always seemed happier. Often times Rin ended up with crowns of flowers I know she didn't braid, or Shippou munched on leaf-fulls of berries he hadn't had time to pick.

When I noticed these occurrences I'd give Sesshomaru a secret smile, and he'd just "hn" in response. Imagining Sesshomaru frantically picking berries or braiding a crown of flowers seemed laugh-worthy, and I knew my friends would say I was crazy if I mentioned the scenario. Still, knowing Sesshomaru did these sweet little things on the sly warmed my heart and proved he had one of his own somewhere behind that spiky breastplate. The fact that he did these things for the kids, demanding no credit or thanks in return, made me appreciate him more.

I never would have noticed the presence of Sesshomaru's heart if not for the use of InuYasha's. After our fight and my first night with Sesshomaru, InuYasha gave me the space I needed. As each day passed, I felt the weight on my heart lessening. The atmosphere of the group changed each day, and this seemed to be for the better.

Even after only two weeks of having my space, the group seemed happier. As I finished cleaning up the remnants of our dinner, my friends seemed content as they settled in for the rest of the night.

"Need any help, Miss Kagome?" Rin asked as she came to my side.

"No thanks! I'm just about done here. If you want, you and Shippou can come with me while I brush my teeth, wash my face, and change into my sleeping clothes!" Rin and Shippou nodded excitedly at my suggestion, and I smiled widely as I finished my task. "Well, let's get going!" I said as I slung my pack over my shoulders and took their hands in mine.

"Miss Kagome?" Rin ventured after we'd prepared for bed and were walking back to camp. "You seem happier since you and InuYasha broke up," she stated quietly.

"Well, I guess you could call all of that a break up. And I am happier, Rin. InuYasha and I just work better as friends." I heard the conviction in my own voice and knew I spoke the truth. Slowly, I was feeling happier.

We walked in silence until the light from the campfire flickered over us and I heard the faint sound of InuYasha and Miroku talking. Just as we were about to walk back into the warm circle of firelight, Rin grabbed my sleeve and turned big, brown eyes on me.

"I'm glad Miss Kagome is happier, because that makes Sesshomaru-sama happier too."

"What?" I asked dumbly, but by then Rin and Shippou were scampering to their sleeping bag, leaving me standing at the edge of the firelight, mouth hanging open in shock. I snapped my jaw shut and gave a little shake of my head, trying to clear my jumbled thoughts. My attempt failed and I found myself mechanically walking to Sesshomaru, spreading my sleeping bag, and slipping into its warm depths.

My friends too settled in for bed, pleasantly talking for a bit before their murmured conversations dwindled and their auras went calm as they each drifted to sleep. Soon enough only Sesshomaru and I remained awake; I decided to take advantage of the moment alone and get to know Sesshomaru a little better. I'd already witnessed the existence of his soft side, so maybe Sesshomaru would open up and allow me to know him. Still, I really doubted the demon Lord and I would be swapping secrets and braiding each other's hair anytime soon….

"So Sesshomaru, how've you been lately?" I inquired. When he raised an eyebrow and sent me a look that questioned my competency, I decided this wasn't the best route to take.

"I'm trying to make some small talk here. You know, get to know you better! Think you could spare me and play along?" Even as I asked, I knew the answer I'd receive.

"This Sesshomaru does not make 'small talk' or 'play along'." Without changing his bored expression, he still managed to look both horrified and disgusted by the suggestion. "The best way to gain knowledge comes through asking directly."

I blinked a few times, staring at him blankly. Did this mean he'd actually answer a question if I asked?

"So you'll actually answer my questions?" I vocalized my thoughts.

"Within reason," he shrugged.

Bingo.

"What's that fuzzy thing you always wear? Is it your tail or something?" I gestured to the mass of fur spilling around him.

"That 'fuzzy thing' as you eloquently dubbed, is a pelt. This pelt has been in my mother's family for many generations," he announced proudly.

"Wow! So that makes your fluffy old—really old since you demons seem to live forever!"

"Hn," came his response, followed closely by silence.

"This is the part where you ask me something," I stated when I felt certain he wouldn't say anything more. He gave me a bored look, and I sat up with a huff.

"Come on! Isn't there something you want to ask me? Anything at all that you want to know?"

Raising an eyebrow Sesshomaru gave me a look that screamed, "What could I possibly desire to know about you?"

"Rude," I huffed, flopping back down in my sleeping bag. I turned on my side, determined to ignore him and go to bed, but an annoying thought circled around my brain, demanding that I ask and get my answer. I had no choice but to surrender, so with a sigh, I rolled back towards Sesshomaru.

"How long can you go without sleep? We've been traveling for about a month now, and I've never really seen you sleep. Sometimes I see you meditating, but that's not really the same."

"Demons require significantly less sleep than human. On the road meditation suffices to give my mind the rest needed. At my fortress, however, sleep is a luxury in which I frequently indulge."

"But eventually you'll have to sleep when you are on the road, right? I mean, meditation probably can't cut it forever."

"You are correct in your presumption."

I chewed over this information for a bit until Sesshomaru spoke and broke me free from my thoughts.

"When the night comes, InuYasha will be your guard. How will you react?"

"I know that day will come, and I guess we'll just have to see when that moment arises. For now, I just need my space from him. I'm trying to get over InuYasha, which I'm sure you know from your superior hearing."

"Indeed."

"You probably think I'm some stupid, fickle girl," I laughed. Sesshomaru was the King of Cool and here I was, constantly falling apart.

""I believe you are strong and smarter than most people give you credit. People underestimate you, which give you an advantage. I will not make such a mistake."

"Thanks, Sesshomaru," I responded, understanding the true weight of his words and the enormity of the compliment he paid me.

I rolled over, fully prepared to go to bed, but a thought caused me to look at Sesshomaru over my shoulder.

"You're really not too bad once you get to talking. People underestimate you too."

"Kagome, sleep," he growled, but instead of being threatening, the noise seemed more playful.

"You don't have to tell me twice!"

I snuggled into my sleeping bag and smiled. I drifted off to the deep rumble of Sesshomaru's chuckle.

* * *

><p>Original Posting Date: June 28, 2015<p>

Word Count: 4039

A/N: Hello everyone! I've been super busy this summer, but I'm trying to keep writing every day! This chapter just kind of happened, and not in the way that I planned it xD I hope everyone likes it because I think I like how it turned out! Writing Sesshomaru was hard!

Leave me a review and tell me what you think! Also, come be my friend on Twitter! I'd love to get to know my lovely readers!

Also, I'm looking for a Beta reader to look over all of my stories. I feel that it would be nice to have a fresh set of eyes. I want someone that will tell me what I'm doing wrong so that I can figure out how to correct my own mistakes :) I know that I won't improve if I don't see exactly what I'm doing wrong! If anyone is interested, please message me!


End file.
